Harry Potter and the Secrets of the Past
by JessicaNigellus
Summary: Harry's adventure at Hogwarts, Year 8, becomes an adventure due to a mysterious box, a new teacher, and much more. Death Eaters are out of inact revenge for the fall of the Dark Lord.
1. The Invitation

The woman was sitting in her back yard in her favorite lawn chair enjoying the bright mid July sunshine. She was an average woman, with average looks; hair the color of dark chocolate, eyes of muddy moss green, and skin the color of rose kissed porcelain. The sky was clear for miles but the noise from the traffic kept her distracted from her book. It was her day off and she was trying to spend it relaxing. Her days for the past few years had been filled with going to work at a local factory, coming home to her twin teens complaining and fighting, fixing dinner for her small family, and trying not to remember her past.

She was used to seeing owls flitting around the neighborhood, in through the kitchen window delivering letters to her son and daughter from their many school friends over the summer holiday, but this owl arrived looking disheveled and exhausted, and this owl landed on her lap in the lawn chair.

Puzzled, she took the letter off the owl's leg and offered it a drink from her water glass. The owl drank deeply, nibbled at the woman's fingers in appreciation, and flew up to a shaded branch in a nearby pine tree to rest. The letter was indeed addressed to her "Ms. Jessica Nigellus, Pollywog Pond, Maine, U.S.A . She opened it with trembling fingers. She hadn't personally received an owl in what felt like decades even with two children attending the local School of Magic.

_Dear Ms. Jessica Nigellus,_

_I hope this letter finds you well as that it has traveled far. _

_I am writing to you to offer you a position at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as Professor of Muggle Studies. Rumor has it you are in a unique position to offer our students a broader range of knowledge then has been previously offered here at Hogwarts. _

_Our offer includes the title of Professor, room and board, a private office, and a small stipend for your time. Your responsibilities would be to teach Muggle Studies to our Third Year and higher students; monitor the halls between classes and occasionally at night to help keep students in line; and reporting your progress to the Headmistress. _

_Please respond as quickly as possible as you are our first selection. You will find instructions on how to return the letter by owl on the next page._

_Thank you for you concideration,_

_Professor Minerva McGonagall_

_Headmistress _

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

Jessica was stunned. A world that had shunned her now wanted her back to teach their children using her experiences in the muggle world as material. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry, not realizing that a tear had already began its way down her cheek, so much for not remembering her past.

She walked into the kitchen where her kids were working on their potions homework.

"Ryan, please take some treats out to the delivery owl in the pine tree by then fence" She asked her son.

"Gwen, please make sure there is fresh water in the birdbath." She asked her daughter.

"Mom, you look like you just saw a ghost. What's wrong?" asked Gwen as she filled a pitcher from the kitchen sink. "And you got an owl? Who sent it? What's it about?" asked Ryan as he shook out a few treats from the box.

She thought for a moment then said "We'll discuss it when you've done what I've asked… please." She absentmindedly began clearing the counters to make dinner but realized she wasn't up to the task quite yet. She wasn't even hungry. Why would a school halfway around the world want her to teach? Why now after all these years? And she knew it wasn't a forgery. She remembered her own brother's acceptance letter from Hogwarts and how the seal at the top of the paper couldn't be tampered with no matter how much he tried to make an identical copy for her, so she wouldn't feel so bad about not getting her own.

When the kids returned they sat next to her at the table, clearing a space in the mess of the beakers and cauldrons to place the letter where they all could read it together, though Gwen chose to read it out loud. Ryan spoke first. "If… Well… If we go… Do you think… maybe… we…" She knew what he was going to ask before he forced the words out of his mouth. She knew he hated to hope but couldn't help himself sometimes. "… maybe we could find our… our Dad?" Jessica sighed quietly. "I'm sure we could try but with the troubles I've heard, I don't even know if he's…."

"He's Alive, Mom!" Ryan interrupted. "I know he is! And I know he has a d... a good reason for not finding us and he'll be real happy to see you again and you know it Mom!"

Gwen stared from mother to brother with a look of questioning wonder on her face. "If we go it means leaving our home, our friends here, and our school. It means starting over somewhere else and England is so far away. And I know that owl out there didn't fly straight here across the ocean. How are we going to keep in touch with our friends? Does Floo Powder work that far? Can someone Apparate that far?" Gwen could keep going if she wanted to but she had to breathe sometime and Ryan took his chance to step in. "But if we go we could see where Mom & Dad grew up. We could see where our Dad & his friends went to school."

"We could do that after we graduate!" Gwen interrupted.

"Why wait? And if Mom works for wizards she could get paid in Galleons and not have to go all the way to the Gringotts in Augusta. We would go places without having to convert our muggle money into wizard money first!" Ryan exclaimed.

"Ryan, I will not have my own son bashing anything muggle in this house, including their money!" Jessica stood. "Besides, its muggle money that pays for those muggle pizzas you love so much. I haven't decided if we're going yet or not. You both have good points and I think I need to sleep on it, send my reply in the morning."

"But MOM?" The kids whined in sync as Jessica started her way to her bedroom.

"It's only three in the afternoon." Gwen said sheepishly.

"I might as well get dressed and head to pick us up some dinner." She said. In reality she needed some time to think, alone. She knew her kids well enough to know their opinions and objections quite well; she had raised them alone from birth until they were 11 when they received their acceptance letters to the North American School of Magic.

Ryan would want anything his mother wanted. Since he was young he tried to fill in the void their father left. He wanted to help keep hope in their lives, he wanted to show support to their choices, and he tried many times to step up into the disciplinarian position to punish his sister for her typical misbehaving. Ryan's heart reminded Jessica of her own parents combined; the hopes of her mother and the strengths of her father. His looks were a perfect combination of his father and hers. He had her dark chocolate hair, her smile, and her muddy moss colored eyes set in his father's sockets with his nose and slightly darker skin tone. Sometimes she could hear his father's laugh in him.

Gwen would want to follow the path that gave her both success and excitement. She loved her friends and the fun they had but would ultimately, probably reluctantly, agree with her brother. She sometimes looked like a female version of her father though Jessica never told her so. She had his black hair, his deep eyes, and cunningly handsome smile.

She knew from early on they were destined to be a witch and wizard. Both her and their father's line had been pureblood and the chances of having a squib were very slim. The children started making odd things happen when they were only three. By the time they were five, Jessica had to uproot from the quiet little muggle suburb she was living in to the hustle and bustle of the closest wizarding community she could find and hope that they wouldn't shun her despite her kids. She remained there until the kids began school then moved where she could fend for herself in the small border town of Pollywog Pond. This allowed Jessica to work and live as a muggle while her kids could still travel into the magical town for all their magical relations. Jessica hated this one aspect of the magical world, if you weren't magic, you really didn't belong.


	2. The Box Under the Bed

The memories of the recent past haunted Harry. He decided it was time for some mundane chores to help distract him, something productive that would at least make him feel like he'd accomplished something in the past few months other than attend memorial services for those who fought and died defending the greater good.

Looking around his chosen bedroom in his house, he decided cleaning it would be a good place to start in an effort to claim it as his. He had chosen Sirius's old room. The Gryffindor decorations permanently stuck to the walls by his Godfather had seemed an easier room to take than the others permanently drenched in the greens, silvers, and blacks of Slytherin that covered the rest of the house. Had he finally accepted that Number Twelve Grimmauld Place was his? That this once grand house that once belonged to the _"The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black"_ was now the dusty, moth-eaten house of one lone Potter? Barely; but it was the only place he had left to go.

The remaining Order of the Phoenix members helped him rid the house of most of the protective charms that were in place while it was their base of operations and the security measures in place in case Severus Snape decided to show up. With Kingsley Shacklebolt's suggestion, a few preventative spells were put in place on the off chance a rogue Death Eater might want to enact revenge on Harry for killing Lord Voldemort.

Kreacher came back to the house with Harry, offering his assistance to help him clean the house, to make it presentable in a way his new master and his old mistress would both be proud of. Hermione, ever the S.P.E.W. advocate, could not stand the thought of Kreacher sleeping on a nest of rags in the small, cramped cubby in the kitchen. She suggested, after everything he did to help them and by his leading the House-Elf advancement against the Death Eaters in the Battle of Hogwarts, he deserved some place better. Harry had offered Kreacher his choice of rooms. After an hour of Kreacher crying his lack of unworthiness, he still hadn't accepted anything other than his closet. Harry told him to take Regulus's room. Despite the night full of Kreacher's whines, cries, and wails of both pride and heartache, the elf had accepted and seemed to be enjoying his new accommodations thoroughly. The next afternoon, the room was in complete order and Kreacher's nest was nestled neatly at the foot of the bed. Kreacher had taken it upon himself to clean the master bedroom that had once belonged to Mr. & Mrs. Black and later to Buckbeak the Hippogriph. The room was now free of Hippogriph scratches, feathers, and droppings and appeared as if it was ready to welcome overnight guests.

Now facing the ransacked mess of Sirius's room, Harry wasn't so sure he wanted to clean it. Part of him felt he was invading his Godfather's private past but no other room felt as warm and inviting as this one. The other part wished he had Kreacher's ability to clean up an untidy room in a matter of minutes. He picked up the rubbish bin, sorted through it quickly to ascertain that it contained only trash, sat down on the floor by the door picking through the objects strewn everywhere. Bits and pieces of parchment; broken quills, ink bottles, a comb, plates and cups; copies of The Daily Prophet, some ripped to shreds by what looked like teeth. Once there was a corner free of debris, Harry soon had it filled with clothes, books, and unbroken items to be picked over later.

A soft knock on the door brought Harry out of his trance of picking up and tossing items here or there. Darkness was falling and Harry felt as if he'd barely made a dent in the room. It probably would've progressed faster if he hadn't stopped to read over every scrap of parchment he found in the slight hope of learning more about his godfather.

"Come in" said Harry. It was Kreacher carrying in his supper tray.

"Kreacher is sorry to disturb Master Harry but Kreacher has brought Master Harry a fabulous dinner of lamb chops, boiled potatoes, and carrots with treacle tart for dessert. And Kreacher wants to say thank you again Master Harry for giving Kreacher Master Regulus's room as his own." Kreacher set the tray on the bed and bowed so low that his nose was smashed to the floor. Then stood upright, snapped his fingers and all the gas light fixtures around the room ignited, setting everything alight with a warm glow.

"Thanks for bringing it up to me Kreacher; I didn't realize how late it was getting." Harry said taking his first bite. "And you're welcome, about the room, I'm glad you're happy." He added after swallowing. Harry had to admit that having a house-elf wasn't as bad as Hermione made it sound and Kreacher's increasing happiness helped diminish her beliefs even more. "The food is wonderful too, Kreacher" he added.

Kreacher bowed again. When he stood he pointed his finger at the dirty clothes and dishes piled in the corner and they disappeared with a soft pop. He pointed his finger at the overflowing rubbish bin and the contents also vanished. "If there is anything else Master is needing, Kreacher will help." He said as he left the room leaving Harry alone to contemplate his progress. With the pile gone, he noticed he had actually made good progress. The floor itself was now clear and just needed a good sweeping and mopping. "Thank you Kreacher" Harry muttered to himself as he took another bite of food.

Harry decided he was going to tackle one last area before going to bed. A stray thought of creeping spiders under the bed got him to thinking what else could be under there and what he didn't want crawling on him in his sleep. He was half looking forward to sleeping in a bed again after weeks of sleeping bags, cots, and camp beds while he traveled for the memorial services and celebrations around the area. He spent a long week with the Weasleys' at Auntie Muriel's while the Burrow was repaired. He missed Ginny but didn't want to impose any longer knowing he now had his own place to go. He had spent the last night, the first night back here, on a couch in the drawing room.

Under the bed was dark, dusty, and moldy smelling like the rest of the house. Harry could see that there were more parchment pieces and clothes under here and began pulling them out from every side until he couldn't reach or see any more without assistance of a flashlight. He decided the easiest way to clean under the bed was to move it out of the way. He pushed it hard up against the wall revealing more clothes, dishware, silverware, parchment scraps, broken bits of this and that, and dust. Disappointed by even more unrevealing parchment pieces he began to gather up the clothes and found an old holey muggle style t-shirt that appeared to be caught on the corner of a loose floorboard. Rather than ripping the shirt Harry found he could slip the tips of his fingers in around the shirt to pull up the board to free the shirt. As the board fell back into place he thought he saw a glimpse of something glowing.

Harry grabbed a butter knife he had found under the bed, shoved the edge under the board, and pried it up. Sure enough under the floorboard was a lock box, a small metal box about a foot long and half as wide that needed a small key to open. Harry hadn't seen a key in the rubbish he'd been through. Dying to know what was inside Harry jumped up and began rummaging through the desk, side table, & wardrobe for any sign of a key but with no luck.

Resolved to defeat, Harry sat back down next to the locked lock box and began examining it. It looked ordinary, too ordinary, almost as if it belonged to a muggle and not a wizard. Why would Sirius hide a lock box under his bed? Where would Sirius have hidden the key? What could be so important to hide but not so important as to hide in something magical? Harry shook it and it rattled, but he couldn't guess what was inside by the sound other than multiple objects. Harry rechecked the empty space under the floorboard again for anything else but found none. He replaced the board, slid the bed into place, and climbed on it with the box and fell asleep with thoughts of what it might contain.

Harry woke up while it was still dark out. Kreacher had come in, turned all the lights out, covered him with a freshly clean blanket, and placed his glasses and the lock box prominently where Harry could see on the bed's side table where it gave off a slight bluish glow in the dark. He put his glasses on and began examining the box again in its blue light. On the bottom of the box was what appeared to be writing, and three small empty squares. As Harry read the words he realized they were instructions to open the box.

"_Fill in the blanks by naming the correct letters to gain access, name any of them wrong and the contents will be lost to you forever." _

That doesn't sound good, Harry thought as he looked at the clues.

_ "First letter will be found in the middle of an undying friendship"_

_ "The second letter can be found at the beginning of a truly powerful wizard"._

_ "The third letter can be found twice in the betrayer."_

Harry put the box down to think about the clues. The instructions were correct that the boxes were only big enough to fit one letter in them. Harry reread the clues but was still too tired to figure them out. He placed the box and his glasses back on the side table and went back to sleep.


	3. Unexpected Request

"Harry!" Called a vaguely familiar female voice from the ground floor, forcing Harry to grumble and pull the covers over his head to block out the morning sunshine filtering through the red and gold curtained windows.

"Harry!" Called a second voice from the floor below, male this time, and Harry knew he couldn't ignore their calling much longer.

"Harry? Answer us! Where are you?" cried Hermione from the hallway outside his room. He pushed on his glasses and barely had time to adjust his eyes when the door few open and the two entered the room waving three identical parchment envelopes in their hands.

"Oh, Harry, I can't believe it! You've got to read this, hurry! Kreacher had to have accepted it for you when the owl arrived. It was lying on the kitchen table next to your breakfast waiting for you to come down."

"Hermione, give him a minute to read it." Ron said. "We both got copies and knew you would too."

"Ron, shush… Let him read."

"Oh yea, sorry, mate."

Harry recognized the seal on the back of the envelope immediately and couldn't believe his eyes. It was a letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, his home away from house. It was addressed to:

Mr. Harry Potter

Number 12 Grimmauld Place

London

To Harry's surprise seeing his name addressed to Grimmauld Place felt surreal. He turned the envelope back over and opened it, pulling out the familiar two sheets of parchment.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_ Due to the tragedies of the previous year, all students who were in their seventh year are invited to return to complete their education properly. The Hogwarts Staff, The Governing Board of Hogwarts, and The Ministry of Magic are not excluding anyone from returning to complete their N.E.W.T. level classes should they chose to do so. _

_As another option you may go to the Ministry and apply to become Fully Qualified with the Wizarding Examinations Authority and attempt your N.E.W.T.S. directly with the Ministry. _

_Those wishing to return should notify Hogwarts on or before August 15__th__ so proper accommodations may be made prior to the start of the school year. Once we receive your affirmative reply, a confirmation letter will be sent out immediately along with your book and supply lists._

_ Hoping for your return owl_

_ Professor Filius Flitwick _

_Deputy Headmaster_

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

Harry hastily turned to the second piece of parchment. If it wasn't the familiar supplies list, what could it be? He thought.

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_ I am sending this letter of request to any and all able bodied witches and wizards already of age who wish to return to assist in the rebuilding of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. As you know the castle sustained heavy damages during the battle. Progress has been slow and we need extra hands to help speed the repairs._

_ We could use the extra hands and wands. You are welcome to join us at the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade any time after the receipt of this letter. _

_Professor Minerva McGonagall_

_Headmistress_

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

Harry had to read it twice, even with Ron and Hermione eagerly awaiting his opinion.

"Isn't this wonderful, Harry? We can return and finish our N.E.W.T.S. I never thought after we left last year we'd ever become fully qualified and I know I'm not ready to attempt them at the Ministry." Hermione could barely contain her excitement; her old "lessons first" personality coming through for the first time in over a year.

"Hermione, by the sounds of it, all we have to do is apply to become fully qualified at the ministry. It doesn't say there's a test." said Ron hopefully.

"There probably is Ron, and just because you apply for something doesn't mean you're going to get it."

Ron opened his mouth to say something but saw that Harry was still staring blankly at the pages in front of him.

Harry had barely accepted Number Twelve as his house and now he had the chance to return home, home to Hogwarts, no matter what condition it was in. He was welcome back there and his heart felt lighter than it had in years. But…"Do you think we really could go back?" Harry asked.

"Well, yea" said Ron. "We were invited back, so I don't see why not. We could apparate into Hogsmeade tomorrow and spend tomorrow night in Gryffindor Tower. Hey, Hermione, do you think we'll still be Prefects or do you think we lost those when we left?"

"I think we lost those. Dropping out of school is a horrid example to set…" she said "no matter the reason." She added at the dark look Harry had shot her.

Harry needed to change the subject. The thought of going back was both exciting and terrifying. The memories of the Battle for Hogwarts still haunted his thoughts and dreams. Questions arose of whether he made the right choices in the right sequences. He knew he should be happy Voldemort was gone for good but he couldn't help feeling sorry about having had a hand in the deaths of so many others.

He knew it was wrong to feel that way, it wasn't only his choices, it was theirs too to stand up against the Death Eaters and defend not only the castle but the whole of the wizarding world; the ultimate battle of good and evil.

Then there was the fact that he, Harry, should have been among the dead that night. The Deathly Hallows had allowed him to survive. Fred, Lupin, Tonks, Collin, and many others died helping him and yet he still survives. He needed to figure out why. His life was written up to this point for the sole purpose of destroying one of the most powerful dark wizards in history. He'd done that, but now what? He needed more time to think.

"Hey guys" Harry said pulling Ron and Hermione out of their unspoken argument and began telling them of the lock box he found under the bed.

"Wow, it really glows in the dark?" asked Ron. "You think Sirius put anything important or valuable in there?"

"Maybe" Harry said staring down at the metal box now in his hands, silently and shamefully willing it to open without the use of magic.

"And you're sure there's no key?" asked Hermione. Have you tried "Alohamora yet?"

"No"

Hermione pointed her wand at the box. Harry hastily placed it on the bed as she said the incantation. The box sprouted feet, jumped down and ran under the bed apparently trying to get back under the floorboard.

"Sirius was smarter than that" Ron snickered as he watched Harry pull the now legless box out of its hiding spot. "Accio Key" shouted Ron aiming his wand at the wardrobe.

From the walls of the room came a quiet tinkling sound. "Looks like I found the…." But before Ron could finish the tinkling sound had escalated to a metallic rumbling that began shaking the walls. Through one of the motorcycle posters on Sirius's wall came dozens of keys in all shapes and sizes and began pelting Ron in the head.

"Finite Incantatem" screamed Hermione over the clanging of keys and Ron's muffled cries of "Get em off me! Get em off me!" as he tried to protect his face from the swarming, stinging keys. The keys clanked to the ground and began disappearing as quickly as they appeared.

"I thought you said Sirius was smart?" laughed Harry. He couldn't help himself. He knew if the contents of the box were important to his godfather, then only those worthy of his godfather's trust would gain access. "Sirius wants us to figure out the clues and fill in the letters." Harry raised his wand and silently closed the curtains. The box in his hands began to glow again and the words and squares reappeared on the bottom.

"_Fill in the blanks by naming the correct letters to gain access, name any of them wrong and the contents will be lost to you forever." _

_ "First letter will be found in the middle of an undying friendship"_

_ "The second letter can be found at the beginning of a truly powerful wizard"._

_ "The third letter can be found twice in the betrayer."_

"Harry," Hermione began gently, "I know Sirius is important to you and understanding what was important to Sirius might help you understand him better. I promise, we'll help you figure out how to open it but I think we should concentrate on our futures right now and whether we're going back to Hogwarts. If you still want to be an Auror then getting high marks on your N.E.W.T.S. is still required."

"Why should it be required?" Harry snapped. "I defeated the ultimate dark wizard of our time; they should just give me the job, though I don't know why. All the Death Eaters ran back into hiding after You-Know-Who died."

"Well obviously you've been paying some attention to the reports in The Daily Prophet lately to know that his name is still taboo." Hermione bit back, "but apparently not enough! There a few rogue Death Eaters determined to see you fall and to resurrect You-Know-Who."

"Well that's just stupid. The whole wizarding world knows you can't raise the dead." Harry retorted.

"I know that but that doesn't mean they won't try."

"Hey" Ron interrupted. "Let's go get breakfast, I'm starving."

Harry and Hermione looked dumbstruck at Ron, but Harry had to admit, his distraction had diffused the situation. They all walked downstairs and ate breakfast in silence. Kreacher had thoughtfully added two place settings to the table while they were upstairs.

Well fed and relaxed the three friends stared long and hard at the letters in front of them. Hogwarts wanted them, more so, Hogwarts needed them. They all knew how bad the castle looked when they last departed the school. While still grand in its own way; there were holes in the walls, most of the glass was missing from the windows, and at least one tower fell. Rubble and broken glass scattered the grounds. The interior corridors were littered with dust from broken stone, glass, and dried blood. They knew statues were shattered, paintings torn and ripped from the walls, and suits of armor broken. Harry knew from his own memories the Entrance Hall was covered in busted crystal balls and smashed flower pots and dragon dung fertilizer, remembering how Professors Trelawney and Sprout had helped in their own ways to defend against the Death Eaters storming the castle.

Hermione stood "I for one am going back to Hogwarts. Not only do I want to become fully qualified, I…" her voice caught "I just can't stand the thought of the new first years approaching the castle from the lake and seeing it in anything but its full glory, lit up, standing proud, waiting for the students." She hastily wiped a tear from her eye and Harry wondered if there were other thoughts behind her words. "I'm going back to Auntie Muriel's right now to pack. I've got to do something, a-anything…." She turned her back on the others as she added "to help."

"Of course Hermione," Ron said as he joined her, placing a hand on her shoulder, "we all want to help. What kind of wizards would we be if we didn't help make Hogwarts great again, right Harry?"

"Right" said Harry a little distracted. "Right" he added more meaningfully. "You're right, Hermione. Hogwarts needs us and we should help. I want to help too."

"Great! Then go pack, we'll wait for you down here." Hermione suggested.

Harry gave a half-hearted chuckle. "It'll take a little bit longer for me to be ready" he said thinking of the spells that would need to be in place, he'd have to go to Diagon Alley to buy a new trunk, he'd need new robes, and supplies, and what would Kreacher think? "I'll meet you at Auntie Muriel's in two days and we can go from there. He explained some of the reasons to them and they seemed to understand. They agreed to meet him in two days and left.

He was going back to Hogwarts, he thought as he walked back up the stairs. He knocked on Kreacher's door which still bore the warning "Do Not Enter" written by its previous owner years before. The door opened and Kreacher bowed "Master Harry, how may Kreacher assist you?" he asked enthusiastically.

"Actually, Kreacher, I was hoping we could talk for a minute," Harry said, adding "if you're not busy."

"Kreacher always has time for Master Harry" he said, looking more uncomfortable by the second. "Kreacher is not used to asking masters to enter his room or offering masters to sit. Kreacher is not sure it is right" he said, his eyes scanning the room anxiously and Harry knew he was looking for ways to punish himself that Harry had not already banned him from doing.

"It's ok, Kreacher." Harry said as he took a seat on the bed "we'll figure this out together."

Kreacher climbed up on the bed next to Harry. "What is Master Harry wanting to talk to Kreacher about?"

"Well, I got this letter today, from Hogwarts" and Harry explained the contents to Kreacher then asked "Do you think we should go back?" He didn't know why he asked it this way but couldn't help but wonder what Kreacher thought.

"Master Harry is asking Kreacher for his thoughts?" he asked slightly confused, his eyes watering in wonder as he stared up at Harry.

"Yes, I am Kreacher."

"Oh, Master Harry, Thank you!" Kreacher cried. "Kreacher goes where ever his master tells him to go! But Kreacher would like to go wherever his master goes. If Master Harry wants to go back to Hogwarts then Kreacher would like to go with him." He finished with pride filling his face.

Harry smiled. There was no better way for a house-elf to answer a question like that and in all the years he had known Kreacher, never imagined the day when the house-elf would want to follow Harry wherever he went.


	4. The Leaky Cauldron

That night after a late dinner in the basement kitchen, Harry prepared a list of items he needed from Diagon Alley. Everything he needed for school was left at the Dursley's, the remainder at the Burrow. He doubted he could get everything from both places together in the 2 days he gave himself and he didn't feel like facing the Dursleys again anytime soon.

"Um, excuse me, Uncle Vernon? May I go up to my old room and get some of my old school supplies I left here before I forced you out of your home with those strange wizards?"

He could picture Uncle Vernon's face changing to a deep ruddy purple before exploding "WE THREW IT ALL OUT IN THE RUBBISH COLLECTION! GET OFF MY STOOP!"

No, Harry wasn't much interested in facing Uncle Vernon any time at all.

He tried to remember the previous 6 Supply Lists, he had to leave the burrow before he received the list for his 7th, he wrote in no particular order:

1 School Trunk

3 sets of Work Robes

1 set Dress Robes

1 Winter Cloak

1 Cauldron & Ladle

1 set glass phials

Standard ingredients for NEWT level Potions

1 set brass scales

1 pair protective gloves

Quills, Parchment rolls, Ink bottles

Socks, undergarments, shirts, jeans

Money from Gringotts

He knew he wouldn't need a telescope again since he wouldn't be taking Astronomy and as far as his books, he would have to wait until he received his book list and order them from Flourish & Blotts. With a long sigh he stood up to go to bed leaving the list on the kitchen table.

Harry shuffled his way down to the basement kitchen for breakfast after a weary night of confusing dreams. He dreamt house elves were reconstructing Hogwarts out of children's' building blocks next to Grawp who was using the Whomping Willow to replace the top of the Divination Tower and Professor McGonagall was directing the repairs like an orchestra conductor while standing on the roof of the Weasley's old Ford Anglia.

Shaking the sleep out of his head, he arrived in the kitchen to find his breakfast laid out for him at the head of the table and the remainder of the table layed out with neatly organized school items. Harry couldn't believe his eyes; nearly everything on his list was here, waiting for him.

"Kreacher, where did you get all this stuff?" Harry asked, knowing it was the only logical explanation for piles of folded laundry, bundles of quills and parchment, bottles of ink, and an empty school trunk at the far end.

"Kreacher saw Master's list on the table last night" Kreacher said anxiously. "Kreacher searched the house for all the things Master needed for Hogwarts and gathered them here where Master could see. The only thing Kreacher couldn't get was the Potions ingredients" He looked up into Harry's eyes nervously, as if fearing failure.

Harry picked up the list and saw Kreacher had checked off every item apparently as he found them. Harry compared the lists to the items on the tables. The school trunk was bit battered on the edges, but no worse for wear than his had been and it was spotlessly clean. Next to it were 3 sets of Work Robes, all carrying the Gryffindor logo. These had been Sirius's robes. Harry held one set up, they'd been expertly altered to Harry's size. The set of dress robes were black with green piping, no doubt belonging to one of the Black's from Slytherin, but like his old dress robes, the green would "bring out his eyes" as Mrs. Weasley had said. The winter cloak was plain black and also altered and on top of it was Sirius's old Gryffindor scarf. Harry's own socks, undergarments, shirts, and jeans were lying there too, freshly laundered and folded, ready to be packed.

Kreacher was right; the only thing missing from the list was his ingredients. Kreacher had even managed to find 1 galleon, 3 sickles, and 32 knuts. Harry chuckled.

"Kreacher, it's great. Perfect, really." Harry said and Kreacher beamed with pride.

Harry finished his breakfast, packed up the trunk with Sirius's old belongings thankful that Hogwarts stuck with traditions. The Gryffindor logo that was embroidered on the Robes hadn't changed in over 20 years and by the looks of it at the castle, in over a thousand. He was doubly grateful Kreacher had the ability to alter the clothes to fit and mend them to appear almost new again.

"Just a few more personal items from upstairs and I think the trunk will be ready to go" Harry said out loud. "Kreacher, would you mind taking my trunk to Hogwarts for me, once I'm done, and get settled in there?"

"Kreacher would be honored, Master" he said with a bow and left the room to pack his own belongings. Harry wondered what a house elf could possibly pack, but didn't stick around to find out.

Back upstairs in his room Harry found an old rucksack in the closet. Checking the main section was empty, he packed his remaining clothes and toiletries for the trip to Diagon Alley and then on to Auntie Muriel's, then to Hogsmeade and Hogwarts. Glancing around the room, he saw Sirius's old lock box sitting on the side table. He thought about leaving it here, returning over Christmas break. How important could anything in it be to Harry in school? But with a last glance checking over the room to make sure he had everything he needed, he grabbed the box and placed it in the trunk to go to Hogwarts ahead of him.

Harry could finally cross off potion ingredients and money from Gringotts that evening. He decided to spend the night in the Leaky Cauldron before heading to Ron's Auntie Muriel's in the morning as promised. His day had been uneventful except for being recognized wherever he went, offered innumerous hands to shake, free items, many congratulations and thank yous, and a proposal of marriage from a middle-aged witch for her school aged daughter. Harry knew it would be this way. He'd gone from "The-Boy-Who-Lived" to "The Chosen One" to "The Savior of the Wizarding World" in the last 17 years. He was glad to see that Diagon Alley was looking livelier than it had in years. While there were still a few boarded up shops many had reopened, however a small sign hung in the door of the darkened shop belonging to Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes that read simply "Closed".

He thought with all the attention of the day he'd want to be alone and considered ordering room service for dinner that evening but found he longed for some form of company. He chose a small table in a dark corner where he could watch the goings on in the tavern. The last time Harry had been through here, he'd been under his invisibility cloak and the bar area had been deserted except for the innkeeper Tom. Harry was glad to see it busy again and could tell Tom was too by his broad, toothless grin, happily taking Harry's order and bringing back in record time. Tom bowed very slightly in his own show of appreciation for Harry's actions and tactfully left the bill for dinner marked "Paid in Full" on the table. That didn't stop Harry from leaving a 100% tip under his bowl when he was finished.

As he ate, he watched a pair of teen wizards enter from London side of the tavern and look around the dingy bar as if their world was falling apart around them. They were dragging school trunks behind them. The boy had a cat's traveling cage balanced on his and the girl had an owl cage balanced on hers. Following behind them was a frazzled looking witch dragging her own quite ordinary looking luggage. They couldn't have been much younger than Harry, maybe they were in Ginny's year.

At the thought of her, his heart gave a lurching squeeze. He would be seeing her again tomorrow and it had only been 4 days since he had last seen her but couldn't help longing to see her again. His thoughts of her left his head spinning.

He watched the small family apparently order a room because Tom led them up the stairway shortly after the witch approached the bar. Harry watched shoppers come and go from London to Diagon Alley and out again. He watched a pair of lovers in the alcove snuggling, but feeling guilty, quickly turned away. He watched more witches and wizards enjoying meals. Harry had to admit, the cooking here had improved since the last time he stayed. Many of the tables stayed full and when they emptied didn't stay so for long at all.

Soon Harry noticed the small family had occupied the table next to him and the kids looked more gloomy than they had when they entered and were apparently arguing with their mother about something. By their accents, Harry could tell they weren't from around here. They sounded, he thought, American. He remembered a few shows on the television with American actors or musicians being interviewed for one of Aunt Petunia's gossip shows.

"Mom, this place is a dive. Are you sure this is the only place to stay in all of London?" said the girl.

"I gotta agree, there's got to be a muggle motel somewhere cleaner than this." Said the boy.

"I said" the mother spoke up in a surprisingly local accent that startled Harry "that we are staying here and that is final. I need to go to Gringotts in the morning and this is just outside of the best shopping area in all of England for you to get everything you need for school."

"There's a mall around here?" The girl asked hopefully.

"Don't be dumb Gwen, Mom already said we're doomed to the lives of the wizarding world soon as we landed in London." the boy hissed at his sister.

"Don't call your sister dumb, Ryan" the mother said. "And keep your voices down. The whole building doesn't need to know your discomforts. And Gwen, put your wand away, there's no reason to have it out in here."

Harry couldn't help but smirk a bit. The looks on Gwen's face not only when she was looking around for something to entertain herself but also after she had been caught had been looks of pure troublemaker and troublemaker gone wrong.

The mother glanced around in embarrassment as she took a sip of her butterbeer. As her eyes landed on Harry she choked and sputtered on her drink. Gwen patted her back and asked if she was ok, she nodded she was and quickly averted her eyes.

"It looks like you saw a ghost again Mom" Ryan said looking in Harry's direction then back at his mother not knowing what surprised her.

"I'm fine really" she reassured her kids as Tom brought over their dinner order.

Harry took this opportunity to sneak off up to his room. He was used to people recognizing him, but her reaction wasn't of surprise at seeing someone famous at the table next to her. Her son Ryan was right; she did look like she had seen a ghost.


	5. The Weasleys

The next morning Harry woke early and left to meet up with Ron and Hermione at Auntie Muriel's house. He kind of wanted to avoid running into the small family from the night before. Part of him was still curious as to why she had looked at him that way, as if a vampire were sitting at the next table. All the color had drained out of her face and her eyes widened in shock when she caught a glimpse of Harry.

It was only July 30th, why was she so worried about getting her kids their school supplies so early in Diagon Alley? And had they really come from America all the way to England so her kids, who looked to be about 6th or 7th years, could attend Hogwarts? Harry let these thoughts flit out of his head just before he apparated out of Diagon Alley and out onto a deserted road in Ottery St. Catchpole and began walking to his destination a half mile up the road.

Harry had passed his apparition test with flying colors earlier this month at the Ministry of Magic and earned his license to use this method of travel through the wizarding world. Minister Shacklebolt made the arrangements for Harry to take the test without completing his course as Kingsley had personally witnessed his abilities. "It's just a formality" Kingsley had told Harry the day of the test. Harry doubted he could ever get used to the idea of the great, tall, deep voiced member of the Order of the Phoenix, Kingsley Shacklebolt, as Minister of Magic; however Harry was grateful it was him over some of the other available choices. Kingsley was already making positive progress.

When Harry reached the small picket fence in front of Auntie Muriel's house he saw that Ginny was waiting for him at the gate. "Everyone's over at the Burrow today" Ginny said smiling. She pushed the gate closed behind her, took Harry's hand and they walked back down the road to the Weasley's. Harry knew she hadn't needed to wait for him to tell him that, Muriel would've told him when he showed up, but he was glad she was there. He was hoping for some alone time, even if it was only a short walk.

As she leaned her head on Harry's shoulder for a second she said "You know, Mum's still not too pleased with you. She's still hesitant to accept the offer you made Dad, and the only reason she's considering it, is to humor him. She thinks it's way too much." Harry gave a silent chuckle. He wasn't too worried about Mrs. Weasley coming around to accepting the small bag of galleons Harry had offered Mr. Weasley as "Payment of Services Rendered" and "Advanced Payment of Services to be Completed" and "Advanced Payment of Rent" for the repairs and housing of "Harry's Motorcycle" in the garden shed. The amount was far more than what the bike was worth, even fully repaired, and he probably bought himself fifty or more years of storage in that little shed but he didn't care. He wanted to help with the repairs on the Burrow and knew the Weasley family to be too dignified to accept it as charity.

"As long as their getting use of it, I say it's just enough." Harry said smiling. Ginny grinned and they walked the rest of the way in silence, hand in hand and Harry couldn't have felt more content.

When they reached the garden gate of the Burrow, Harry noticed there were 10 trunks packed and stacked near the door. A long table had been set up outside and was being filled by Percy, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, and Fleur with what appeared to be a glorious brunch.

Mrs. Weasley smiled tearfully at Harry and pulled him into a great warm, welcoming hug and explained since these next few months were going to be so busy, she was determined to celebrate his birthday today.

"With all of us going to help repair Hogwarts, I doubt there will time to celebrate properly what with all the work needing done. You'll get your presents today before we leave this evening Harry.

"Wait" Harry said startled. "You're all going to Hogwarts to help? What about Mr. Weasley, Percy, Bill, & Charlie's work?" He asked.

"Oh, don't worry about us Harry" Mr. Weasley said placing his hand on Harry's shoulder. "Minister Shacklebolt said we deserved a well earned vacation from work" he winked "And if we want to spend it rebuilding Hogwarts, all the better for everyone."

Bill walked up and shook Harry's hand "And I told Gringotts it's good business to make sure new witch and wizard trap busters get their proper training and told them I was coming to help"

He was welcomed by almost the whole Weasley clan. He figured the rest must still be in the house. Harry dropped his rucksack off by the pile of trunks and found Hermione in the kitchen cleaning up the food preparation mess a little roughly. She looked annoyed and exhausted.

"Hermione, are you ok?" Harry asked.

"I'm fine" she said a little sharply.

"Um… are you sure?"

She slammed a plate a little too hard on the pile and cracked it. "It's Ron" she said as she repaired the plate. "He's upstairs with George talking about skipping out on his final year and working at the joke shop. A week ago George was saying he had enough assistants to run it as is without him babysitting them and now he's trying to talk Ron into being his new partner." Hermione sighed.

"Sorry" said Harry sympathetically. He was looking forward to finishing his final year with Ron by his side but finally doing something this big, though this normal, felt wrong. "Maybe when we're back at Hogwarts, he'll change his mind." He added hoping to cheer Hermione up a tiny bit.

"Maybe" she quietly agreed.

Harry looked around the interior of the Burrow. He could see the money he'd advanced the Weasley's had been put to good use. There were new kitchen cupboards and the kitchen area had been expanded upon. By the looks of it, the table outside would now fit everyone comfortably inside. Harry guessed the reason everyone was outside was because the day started out so perfectly beautiful and the fresh warm summer day was inviting them to join in and enjoy it.

"FOOD IS READY!" Mrs. Weasley yelled from out in the yard then popped her head into the kitchen a moment later and said "Come on Dears, everyone else is already outside. Hermione, the dishes can wait until later. Come on, now." She smiled at them.

They ate and talked of normal things like projects at work and home that would be put on hold, and speculating over the changes in Hogwarts staff. No news had yet been released on the staffing positions except Professor McGonagall taking over as Headmistress. Everyone knew there would be a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, and they laughed at the speculation of zero applicants until Ginny said "Harry could teach it."

He dropped his fork. For a minute he could almost picture it. Teaching a class wouldn't be much different than teaching the DA in the Room of Requirement. It would just be more organized, and more people, he gulped. But before he could get used to the idea, Mr. Weasley said "Harry must first complete his own schooling to become fully qualified before becoming a teacher. No matter what his past, Hogwarts has a long standard of principles to uphold."

Silence fell at the table for a few minutes until a tiny ticking and buzzing noise was heard, like the sound a wind up tin toy would make if it was set loose on the table. Everyone was looking for the source of the noise until out from between two large empty bowls of whipped potatoes and scrambled eggs appeared a tiny toy action figure no taller than a deck of cards. It was walking towards Harry and looked to be wearing a Gryffindor Seeker's uniform. Harry picked it up in the palm of his hand and saw it had the same black, untidy hair and glasses he did, and a miniscule lightning bolt scar on its forehead.

Harry looked right at George who was trying hard to study the pile of sausages on his plate while not very successfully hiding his chucking.

"You made this?" Harry asked incredulously.

George laughed, "Yea, Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes newest line of 'Harry the Hero' action figures"

"George Weasley!" His mother yelled. "You will NOT make money off of someone else without his or her permission!"

"That's what I was trying to get when I let it loose, Mom" George said laughing. "Harry, poke it with your wand"

Reluctantly, Harry gave the mini him a tiny prod with his wand. The tiny figure pulled out its own wand and the tip blinked. A moment later a second buzzing could be heard and out of a small box in George's lap came a mini Firebolt. The mini Harry mounted the broomstick and flew around the table. Harry and a few of the others began to laugh too.

"Is this the only one?" Harry asked.

"Yea, so far, we weren't sure you'd approve so we left it at the one" Said George.

"It's brilliant!"

Harry thought for a moment of the small Viktor Krum figure Ron had purchased at the Quidditch World Cup and laughed when he remembered the only thing that figure could do was walk around and brood.

After lunch Mr. Weasley brought out two presents for Harry. "Tomorrow might be horribly busy for everyone and we just couldn't stand the thought of you missing out on your birthday." He said as he laid the pile in front of Harry on the table. "According to the letter we received from Professor McGonagall, there is tons of work to be done in a very short amount of time. " He sat down and awaited Harry to open his gifts.

Mr. & Mrs. Weasley gave him his hand knitted green Christmas sweater with a golden lion stitched in the center of the chest. "There was no way to get it to you last Christmas dear, but we still wanted you to have it." said Mrs. Weasley. They also gave him a brand new magical camera, the kind that takes the magical pictures that show the people moving in them. "Wow, thank you Mr. Weasley, Mrs. Weasley, this is great." He said, truly touched by their thoughtfulness. Once he had it set up he snapped a quick picture of everyone sitting around the table together and would later add it to the scrapbook Hagrid gave him for his 11th birthday.


	6. On to Hogwarts

The Burrow was full of frenzied, last minute checking and rechecking to make sure everyone had everything before they were to leave for Hogwarts that night. It reminded Harry of the many times he stayed here over the past summers and had left for King's Cross Station to board the Hogwarts Express to take them to school. They were going to be traveling by Floo Powder again, it was the easiest way to travel with this large of a group all carrying large trunks to Hogsmeade. The owner of the Three Broomsticks, Madam Rosemerta, had agreed to allow volunteers to show up directly in her fireplace to meet with a member of the Hogwarts staff who would lead them to the castle. This way, all of them would show up at the same place and nearly the same time.

Harry was still leery of using the Floo Network to travel. The last time he tried he was supposed to go into Diagon Alley and ended up in Knockturn Alley. He was worried if he accidently coughed, like he did last time, where he would end up if he mispronounced Three Broomsticks.

When everyone was ready, they lined up in the kitchen and one by one vanished into the green fire. When it was Harry's turn, he slung his rucksack over his shoulder, stepped into the fireplace, tossed the green Floo Powder, held his breath while the flames made their initial flicker then with all the concentration he could muster he said "Three Broomsticks!" The green fire roared around him as he spun out of control, visions of fireplaces flashing before him. Just as he was beginning to feel nauseous, the flames began to die down and the flashing fireplaces slowed until he finally reached his destination. He'd done it; he'd made it to the Three Broomsticks successfully. He stepped out the way just in time for Ron to follow out of the fireplace behind him.

He moved farther out of the way and began looking around the bar. It was filling up quick with both patrons and volunteers; the latter he could tell by the trunks and bags they were accompanied by. Harry saw Neville Longbottom and his grandmother sitting at a table nearby. Some people looked as though they'd been waiting most of the day. Once the fire died down after Mr. Weasley came through, Professor Sprout stood and cleared her throat loudly. Everyone looked to her, quieting their chatter.

"Too all of those here to help Hogwarts, I would like to say thank you. This is the first group to arrive to assist and I am quite pleased to see so many here. In a moment we will be heading up to the castle. Construction is already in progress though there is still much to be done. Our first stop in the castle will be to the Great Hall where you will be asked to set your personal belongings along the outer wall of the Hall. Professor McGonagall will address you all on the details and sleeping arrangements and then dinner will be served." After a round of applause, she said "If everyone will follow me outside, up the High Street, and to the castle gates, please."

There was a loud rumble of chairs scraping the floor, people talking again muttering the locomotor spell to assist in the moving of their luggage. More than 30 people exited the Three Broomsticks and headed up the lane. Harry was pleased to see that all of his 7th year Gryffindor classmates had shown up to assist. Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan walked up to him and the Weasleys as they made their way up the lane.

"I never thought we'd be coming back" Seamus said to Harry.

"Yea, I got to agree." Dean said "After last year I thought we'd be out on our hind ends for sure. A few of us got our expulsion papers, no hope of ever becoming fully qualified."

"I wonder if the work we do will count towards our Charms or Transfiguration grades" Hermione asked and the others laughed.

"Hermione, we're here to help until the start of term. I doubt anything will count until then." Ron told her.

"This will be the biggest 7th year class is Hogwarts history, even with just the ones here returning. Who's to say who else is going to show up over the next few weeks or on the first day of school." Hermione stated.

They continued to talk, catching up on their summers, as they made their way onto the castle grounds. There were still rather large chunks of castle lying around in the grass. In the distance they could see Hagrid and Grawp in the process of picking up one of the chunks below the former West Tower and moving it towards a pile on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. To Harry's knowledge, the West Tower used to house only the owlery. He wondered briefly where the owls would stay.

Gryffindor Tower appeared to be, for the most part, intact, as did the North Tower where Harry remembered housed Professor Trelawney's room and the stuffy Divination classroom. Ravenclaw Tower appeared unstable, though still standing. The Astronomy and now Headmistress's office towers looked almost unmarred by the destruction.

They crossed the grounds into the Entrance Hall of the castle. It had been cleaned and polished since the battle and the four giant hourglasses depicting the house points had been repaired completely. They turned into the Great Hall. The light from the setting sun had already left the hall darkened. Instead of the usual hundreds of floating candles, small candelabras sat spaced evenly on each table dowsing the hall in a soft dim glow. One long table stood upon a raised platform at the front of the hall and ran the width of the room; the familiar staff table already nearly filled with teachers. Another single house table ran the length of the room. It standing alone like that made the hall look empty. The volunteers did as instructed and Professor Sprout made her way up to the staff table as the others sat at the single house table.

Once everyone had settled, Professor McGonagall stood up to the podium as if this were a beginning of the term feast. "Welcome everyone and thank you for answering my request so quickly." She started. "Much work is to be done. We have already started clean up and repairs to the most used and most needed areas of the school. The worst hit was the West Tower which has been deemed unusable until all the debris can be removed and the full extent of the damage analyzed. The remaining towers need to be reinforced to ensure the safety of our incoming students. A list of tasks needing to be completed will be posted each morning in the Entrance Hall just outside of the staff room door. Please choose those tasks best suited to your talents and I add this only for safety reasons that those of you underage, here with the permission of your parents, please stick to the areas of the castle that have been secured."

"Until the morning of September 1st, all female volunteers will be staying in the Hufflepuff house; the entry may be found through the door to the right of the main staircase in the Entrance Hall, down the staircase and behind a still life painting. The password has been disabled however it is charmed to allow only females into the chamber." Harry could've sworn she was looking directly at George when she said this.

"The male volunteers will be staying in the Slytherin Dungeon," there were a few groans from the younger men of the group but Professor McGonagall ignored them; "which is down the north stairwell off the Entrance Hall, likewise the passwords have been removed but the same gender charm has been installed. I expect every one of you to treat your host house's accommodations as if they were your own." She unmistakably gave a pointed look to certain members of the volunteer staff and a few others chuckled knowingly. "Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner will be served on the normal school schedule and we have added a midnight meal for those who choose to work late in areas away from the sleeping chambers."

"Work may begin tonight after you have eaten and settled in with your belongings, if you choose. But for now" she clapped her hands together twice "let us enjoy our meal and rest from our work and journeys of the day."

Professor McGonagall sat down to a round of applause as the two tables filled with fresh fruits, meats, cheeses, potatoes, breads, and drinks. People began to talk and dig in to the wondrous food presented to them.

Halfway though dinner the doors to the Great Hall opened and Hagrid strode in as if in a hurry. "Harry, Hermione, Ron! I knew ya'd come!" He said as he was passing the table, giving each of them a hearty pat on the back that made them feel as if their spines were being pushed into their chests. "Hey Hagrid, good to see you again" Harry said.

"And congratulations on Grawp" said Hermione kindly. "I see he's helping too"

"Aw, Grawpy just needed shown the right way, he did, is all." Hagrid said proudly "makes easy work of them fallen stones from the West Tower. Reckon when the time comes, he'll be able to stack the new ones back up. Well, gotta talk to Professor McGonagall, be sure ta stop by the hut soon." He said as he strode up to the staff table.

Hagrid whispered something to Professor McGonagall who stood and walked out to the Entrance Hall. Harry and the others started speculating the trouble, everything from Grawp dropping a boulder on a greenhouse to renegade Blast-Ended Skewts or some other experimental creatures Hagrid might be breeding.

When Professor McGonagall re-entered the Great Hall she was followed by the same frazzled looking witch and her two children that Harry has seen at the Leaky Cauldron. "Gwen, Ryan you may sit anywhere here along the table. Professor Nigellus, please join us at the staff table." The kids sat at the end of the table near Dean and Seamus. Their mother nervously took the empty chair reserved for the Muggle Studies teacher.


	7. Honor Among the Wicked

Harry found his trunk at the foot of bed in one of the first Slytherin doom rooms. Kreacher went farther than Harry had expected by placing his truck here. He looked around the room. There was a skylight in the ceiling that set the room in a soft greenish glow. When he looked up he saw a clear view of the lake with fish swimming whose shadows acted like clouds on the floor of the room. Ron took the bed next to his. Dean and Seamus joined them soon after, unloading their trunks and making their beds for the night. When Neville entered the room taking the 5th bed, they began laughing. With all the potential beds available in the house, they chose to remain together in the same room.

One difference between the Slytherin dorms and those in Gryffindor Tower was that these rooms were large enough for six beds. They had hoped George would take it but he chose a room with the other Weasley men making Ron feel only slightly guilty for not joining them.

"Excuse me" came a voice from the doorway "is this bed taken?" asked a voice in an American accent.

"No man, come on in" Ron said.

"My name is Ryan Nigellus" the boy said holding his hand out to Ron and then the others in turn, all introducing themselves.

"Where are you from?" Harry couldn't help himself in asking after he remembered seeing Ryan at the Leaky Cauldron.

"We just came here from Maine, in the U.S., our mom was asked to be the Muggle Studies teacher." He said.

"Is this your 7th year too? asked Dean.

"Nah, only 6th year, at least that's where we were heading at our old school" He said.

"What school? Never heard of any schools in North America "Ron stammered.

"The North American School of Magic" Ryan answered. "It was pretty good but we had to come with Mom."

"So that was your sister you came in with?" Dean asked

"Yea, Gwen. She's my twin. Runs in the family Mom says. She has a twin brother too, but I never met him."

"Cool" said Seamus.

"Would you guys mind if I turned in? It was a long trip and that dive of a leaky sieve of an inn we stayed in last night reeked."

The others laughed "The Leaky Cauldron leaves a lot to be desired" said Harry. "Yea, we'll head out to the Common Room."

"Thanks" said Ryan as the others left the room.

Harry and Ron selected chairs in a quiet looking corner in the Slytherin Common Room; some of the other volunteers were sitting around planning out tomorrow's activities. Harry explained to Ron the way Professor Nigellus reacted to seeing him in the Leaky Cauldron.

"Well, you are famous" Ron said "Maybe that's just her reaction to famous people, besides you said she looked frazzled. Maybe that threw her off a bit."

"Yea," Harry thought, "maybe. But why do you suppose they hired a teacher from America?"

"Dunno, maybe no one local wanted it after what happened to Professor Burbage"

"Now with You-Know-Who gone, there's no reason to fear anymore."

"If there was nothing to fear, we'd all be calling You-Know-Who by his name, now wouldn't we" Ron explained.

"Yea, maybe"

Harry and Ron settled into a game of Wizards Chess before heading to bed. Professor McGonagall was right; there was a lot to do and only a short time to do it.

The next morning at breakfast Ryan sat with the others from his dorm. Harry didn't mind because Ryan seemed to click in with them. His sister Gwen sat down sulkily between Ryan and Harry.

"I don't think I like it here much" she whispered to her brother. Harry couldn't help but listen in.

"It's only been one night, what could possibly be the problem?" Ryan asked her kindly.

"I'm in a whole dorm room all to myself, no one talked to me at all last night, and it's cold in that stone room."

"Let me guess: You picked the dorm room farthest from the common room, took your trunk in there, and never came out until now."

"No" she said indignantly, and then softened. "Well, yea, but someone could've come in if they wanted to."

"Geez Gwen" he said "How do you expect to make friends here if you go and hide away from everybody. I know that's not how you became popular back at the NASM."

She picked at the food on her plate and sighed. Harry felt kind of sorry for her. "Hi Gwen, my name is Harry." He said and began introducing her to others at the table giving them the small background he knew from Ryan. He thought the welcome she received was warm and noticed Gwen perk up a tiny bit.

"I didn't see you in the common room last night" Hermione said. "You must have had a long journey to turn in so early."

After learning she was a year younger, Ginny offered to go with her to wherever she chose to help out. "I'm sure there's plenty for us to do, even if it's limited." Gwen smiled at her, appreciatively. By the end of the week it was like Gwen and Ryan had been at Hogwarts since their first year. At the end of the second, they seemed as if they had been part of the gang from the DA.

Two weeks after Harry, Hermione, and the Weasley's arrived at Hogwarts many people had come and gone all helping to rebuild the school to its former glory. Harry could see the improvements progressing nicely and much of the needed spaces were functional. Gryffindor and Ravenclaw towers had been fully repaired and secured for the start of the term; the classrooms were ready, and the hallways between only needed cleaning.

By Harry's opinion, school could start tomorrow and would run smoothly. But the staff would not be satisfied until Hogwarts was fully restored. That evening Professor Slughorn led in a new but small group of volunteers ready to assist, or at least most of them were. A woman walked in, head held high and proud to be there. She placed her dragon hide covered truck against the wall as instructed and started walking towards the dinner table when she noticed her companions had not followed into the Great Hall. She turned towards the double doors, her long platinum blonde hair swaying behind her, and with an air of composure simply said "Get in here, now" Narcissa Malfoy was a woman to be reckoned with tonight and Harry was glad to be out of her way. He'd only ever seen her before with a slight, submissive way about her. Tonight, no one was standing in her way.

Harry could only assume Lucius and Draco were still in the Entrance Hall quietly refusing to enter the Great Hall. She left the room but her voice carried in the echoing stone corridors into the room as if she was standing next to him.

"I told you already why we are here. If I need to repeat it, so be it." She snapped at them. "Our family was too much a part of the destruction of this school and I will not sit by and not be a part of the repairs. Don't give me that look, Lucius. You had a hand in this mess and now you will make restitution. This school has long been a part of the Black family legacy. My Great-Great-Grandfather was Headmaster here and I will not, absolutely not, sit by while this school crumbles around itself! Now get in there and take your seats. Tomorrow you will assist in the repairs or face me!" Her footsteps sounded on the stone floor carrying her back into the Great Hall where she took a seat at the end of the table not looking at anyone. Lucius and Draco reluctantly followed.

Those that overheard Narcissa avoided looking at the Malfoy's but Harry couldn't help but stare at Draco as he too placed his trunk against the wall and took his seat. Harry didn't feel sorry one bit for Draco, or Lucius; both had had their hands in the destruction of all that was important to him. He almost hated the fact that they were there, almost. He also felt it was a fitting, though small, punishment for allowing the Death Eaters to enter the castle in the first place.

Professor McGonagall stood, as she had every night since Harry had arrived, and began her nightly speech about the status of the repairs and instructions to the newcomers. When she reached the point that told the men they would all, regardless of previous house, be staying in the Slytherin dungeons, Draco stood and began a tirade of offences at the indignation it brought to the "Great House of Slytherin". However before he got too far, mother grabbed the back of his robes and pulled him down so hard the thump of his hind end hitting the bench was enough of a jolt to shut him up.

Harry grinned slightly but immediately felt miserable from it. He kind of wished Narcissa had taken a stand against Lucius and Draco a long time ago; maybe it would have spared him at least a little heartache.

Down in the men's dorms the Malfoy's chose a room to themselves and when they did come into the Common Room, they stayed by themselves away from the others, almost sulking that they had to be there. Harry remembered the early morning after the long night of the final battle, how others were celebrating the end of the long war while others mourned the losses of the night. Harry also remembered how the Malfoy's had been there, sitting alone at the Slytherin table seeming at a loss to know if they should even be near. With a great heave out the chair he was sitting in and a sigh of disbelief at what he was about to do, Harry walked over to where the Malfoy's were sitting.

Draco looked up as Harry approached and offered his hand in welcome. "Thank you both for coming to help rebuild Hogwarts" Harry said. Both men looked taken aback by the offer and neither seemed willing to be the first to accept his hand so Harry withdrew it. He understood their thoughts of skepticism and mistrust; he was feeling them too at the moment. "Well, see you then" Harry said walking back to his seat.

Ron looked at him as if a stranger were walking towards him in his place. "What you do that for?" He asked.

"It just felt like the right thing to do"


	8. Myrtle's Bathroom

When Harry, Ron, and Hermione read the repair list outside the Staff Room door they saw that the second floor girls bathroom was selected to be repaired. There was a warning below the request:

* Rain gear and goulashes highly suggested. This bathroom has been in disrepair for decades. It is haunted by the ghost of a teenage girl. Proceed with caution.

"Let's go give it try" Harry suggested. "It should be fairly easy, only a good cleaning."

"Are you crazy? That's Moaning Myrtle's bathroom" Ron looked aghast. "She's likely to drown us out if we try to clean in there!"

"Um, Harry, that bathroom needs more than cleaning. The plumbing needs repaired and Myrtle would throw a fit if anyone messed with her toilet. I think my time would be better utilized up on the fifth floor." Hermione said "It looks like there are still windows that need repaired up there. It's going to be getting colder soon and the castle is drafty as it is and…"

"Fine" Harry interrupted. "I'll go do it alone, it's not like Myrtle never helped me before, maybe she'll permit me to do something for her." He added as the others gave him strange looks. He chuckled, shaking his head at them, and walked away smiling.

Harry proceeded up the stairs to the second floor supply closet but found it empty of mops and the rain gear he knew to be stored in there by Mr. Filch for when he needed to work in Myrtle's bathroom or the hallway outside. She was notorious for flooding the bathroom in her tempers.

As Harry reached for the door to the bathroom Lavender Brown and the Patil twins, Pavarti and Padma, came around the corner. "Don't bother trying" Lavender said. "We tried yesterday and she kept flooding all the places we tried to mop up and then she decided it would be better to splash us all with toilet water." They shivered at the memory.

"And she kept wailing the whole time about us messing up her bathroom" Padma said.

"We couldn't hear ourselves think," Pavarti added.

"Er… Thanks." Harry said and pretended to start walking past the door until the girls were out of sight then turned and entered the bathroom.

Nothing could've prepared him for the sight he found once he entered. Draco Malfoy was mopping the floor, with a mop instead of using his wand, and Myrtle was sitting on one of the sinks watching.

"Oh, Hello Harry" Myrtle said in her sing-song content voice. Draco jumped.

"What are you doing in here" Malfoy demanded.

"I was planning on doing the same thing you are" Harry said grabbing another mop to follow Draco's example.

"Get out Potter!" Draco said maliciously.

"It'll go faster if we both do it" Harry suggested.

"I said GET OUT!"

"Now boys" Myrtle giggled. "No need to fight over my bathroom, I can share it with both of you. Though if you want to kill each other, I could use the company," she squealed gleefully.

"Thanks Myrtle" Harry said as he began to mop again.

"Why don't you go find someone to be a hero for" Draco snapped. "This 'work' seems so much above you" he taunted.

Before Harry could come up with a good remark, Myrtle said "Harry can be my hero, if he wants."

"Fine, I'll leave!" Draco dropped his mop and headed for the door.

"Seriously Draco," Harry said "The sooner the work is done, the sooner the school will be ready. Why don't you mop while I repair the mirrors or something." He suggested as Draco stormed off towards the door.

Myrtle had swooped down between Draco and the exit of the bathroom, essentially blocking his way out. Though Draco could easily walk through her, not many people chose to voluntarily walk through a ghost.

"Draco" Myrtle moaned "I really liked what you said earlier, before you started mopping, about how if the bathroom were repaired more girls would come in and visit me. You said if the bathroom were fixed up, maybe I could even make a few friends. If you don't help fix my bathroom, no one else will" she began to cry. "I chased everyone else off." She howled and flew off taking a dive into her toilet splashing more water everywhere.

"Fine, I'll help." Draco said towards Myrtle's toilet. "But you're mopping" he added to Harry and started repairing the mirrors.

Draco and Harry worked until lunchtime and made some visible progress. Myrtle sat perched on the sink Harry knew to be the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets, a sink no magic could make work as originally intended. She seemed pleased to have the company and hadn't cried or whined or moped in hours.

"Let's head to lunch" Harry suggested. "I'm starving."

"You go ahead, I'm not hungry," Draco replied and started cleaning under one of the sinks.

"Suit yourself," Harry said as he set down the rag he was using to polish the other sinks with and left the room.

Harry joined his friends at lunch and told them about the happenings in the bathroom, the progress made, and the suggestion Draco gave Myrtle. Hermione and Ron caught Harry up on the repairs to the fifth floor statues and paintings, and how they heard that the greenhouse repairs were finally finished too. George and Percy revealed that the West Tower was finally emptied and ready for inspection. Dean and Seamus spent the morning polishing trophies after Filch caught them playing Exploding Snap behind a tapestry on the third floor. Harry knew they were all getting tired from the repair work, it was exhausting and he understood the need for relaxing but there was a time and place for it.

When Draco didn't show up for lunch Harry grabbed a few sandwiches up in a napkin, 2 glasses, and a pitcher of pumpkin juice and headed back to the bathroom. He knew Draco was lying about not being hungry, he had heard his stomach growl at the mention of lunch. When he approached the corridor he heard Myrtle moaning and crying, and the voices of two men shouting.

"I don't care what you say, Draco! No son of mine will be caught slopping around the floor like a simple house-elf, no matter what your mother has to say about these useless repairs!" Lucius Malfoy yelled.

"And I don't care what you say any more! This is all your fault to begin with! You're the one who invited the Dark Lord into our home! You who made me follow his orders or bring shame to our family! You're the one who allowed HIM to threaten my mother if I didn't do as HE said!" Draco yelled back.

"Don't you dare take that tone with me!"

"Don't you stand there like you're better than everyone! At least I am doing as Mom said and not sulking around like some helpless loser!"

Lucius inhaled in shock "How dare you call me that, you own Father?" He snarled

When Harry opened the door quietly he saw Lucius had his wand drawn on his unarmed son, the tip glowing red. Harry saw Draco's wand sitting on the window ledge where he had placed it earlier. Harry dropped what he was carrying and it landed with a loud smash, pulled his own wand and took aim at Lucius. "I suggest you leave the room"

"Or what? The Hero Potter will kill me?" Lucius laughed. "Stay out of this, it is between me and my son."

"If you can't accept that what we did was wrong then you're no father of mine" Draco snapped looking at Lucius with every last ounce of strength he could muster, tears beginning to fall down his checks.

Lucius drew back his wand at his son but Harry reacted quicker

"Expelliarmus!" Harry shouted and Lucius's wand flew into the air and landed in Myrtle's favorite toilet where a flush was immediately heard.

"Get out of this bathroom" Harry said, his wand still pointed at Lucius. "And if you know what's good for you, out of this castle." He added.

"You are meddling in things you have no business in, Potter!" Lucius said "If I were you I would be more worried about keeping that head on your shoulders than cleaning this bathroom," he added.

"Harry said GET OUT!" Myrtle screamed at Lucius looking every bit as frightening as a ghost should. She sent a blast of water out of her toilet at him, his snapped wand flying at his head.

He picked up what was left of his wand and attempted to walk out of the bathroom with what was left of his pride only to find himself face to face with Narcissa and most of the other volunteers attracted by the commotion.

Tears were running down Narcissa's face as she assessed the situation in front of her. Her son unarmed, Lucius's wand busted, and Harry standing there with his wand now at his side. Harry knew nothing he did to Lucius now would be as bad as what Narcissa was capable of doing to him.

"What is going on here?" she asked with fire in her eyes.

"Draco was helping to fix my bathroom when he" Myrtle pointed at Lucius "came in and started yelling at him for no reason. Something about wasting his time pleasing his mother and doing work beneath his status, he said." Myrtle added "called him a house elf" she chuckled then lowered her voice right next to Narcissa's ear "The old one pointed his wand Draco, and Harry here was just protecting my friend." Myrtle pulled away to float proudly between Draco and Harry.

"Is this true?" Narcissa asked quietly.

Lucius stammered "It's not what you think, Darling" he tried to reach out to touch his wife reassuringly but she pulled away.

"Is what she says true, Lucius?" she said more forcibly. "Did you threaten my son?"

"I wasn't going to do anything, Dear, just let him know his place."

"Get out." She said quietly, tears streaming down her face, but loud enough for Lucius to hear. He looked around all the faces staring at him in disbelief and distain. He hung his head slightly as his passed his wife and walked away.

Professor McGonagall and Professor Nigellus grabbed Narcissa on each side just before she collapsed in a fit of grief. "I think we better get you to the Hospital Wing for some rest, dear." McGonagall said as they turned away through the crowd. "Back to work everyone", she added as they walked away. Draco followed.

Harry stood there shaking for a minute as Ron, Hermione, and Ginny walked up to him. Ron cleaned up the mess Harry dropped outside the bathroom door. Hermione began to sieve the water up with her wand. Myrtle quietly watched the group continue what Draco and Harry started, not commenting and not crying as they worked.


	9. Werewolves in Hogsmeade

Dinner that night was subdued after the excitement of the afternoon. No new volunteers showed up that evening so Professor McGonagall's speech was limited to the status of the repairs which she was proud to say were progressing faster than planned. The West Tower had been examined and rebuilding could start the next day. Narcissa Malfoy was still up in the Hospital Wing, no doubt Draco was with her, and Lucius Malfoy had removed his belongings from Slytherin House and disappeared.

Dinner had just been cleared to make way for dessert when a distant piercing scream carried into the Great Hall from the open front doors of the school. The Staff and volunteers ran out onto the grounds to find the source. Professor Sinistra, the Astronomy teacher, was running up the path from the gates screaming.

"There are Werewolves in Hogsmeade!" she exclaimed as she reached the group. "They're trying to destroy the town! Someone's been bitten!" She ran into the arms of Madam Pomfrey for support, shaking in fear.

"Everyone underage, back in the castle" McGonagall commanded. "Staff, commence defensive strategies!"

Half of the staff ran back into the castle and Harry could feel the tingling of magic being cast from behind him as Professor Flitwick began chanting as he ran back inside with the underage kids following close behind him. He knew most of the spells well enough to do them himself but didn't want to interfere with the plan already in action. He wanted to go into town to fight the werewolves.

"Aim to disable, not kill" a strong female voice came from behind Harry. He turned and saw the former Auror now Professor Proudfoot striding up. She had long, bone straight black hair, dark russet colored skin, and eyes as black as onyx. "Minister Shacklebolt wants to know if they're still working with the Death Eaters." She added. "Unless you see the dog Greyback, he's on our 'Shot to kill' list." She smiled devilishly as she drew her wand and began marching out the gates. Some of the other staff and volunteers followed to fight.

"Harry, no" McGonagall said as she grabbed his shoulders just as he headed off in the direction of Hogsmeade to assist. "I need you inside with the others; your skills will be essential to protect them if needed, please." She pleaded.

Harry turned slowly, miserably, to reenter the castle as others marched out to Hogsmeade. He could hear the yells and cries as the battle began behind him and he longed to defend the town instead of waiting here. He wanted to be a part of the fray, engaging in chasing off or capturing the werewolves that invaded Hogsmeade. He felt like he was being forced into hiding. His anger was peaking at not being able to help; he wanted to take down Greyback, if he was there. Something inside of him said he was if someone had already been bitten. Instead he waited with the remaining group nervously in the Entrance Hall.

If felt like an eternity as he waited for some news, some sign as to which side was succeeding. The waiting was killing him, not knowing what was going on. Ginny stepped up next to him and took his hand, whether to comfort herself as her family fought or to help comfort Harry, he didn't know; he didn't care.

Eventually the sounds began to die down and they watched helplessly as two bodies were carried up the path on invisible stretchers. The waiting watchers ran out to find Neville Longbottom swearing as he was carried on one of the stretchers and an unknown young boy on the other.

Harry ran up to help Mr. Weasley and Percy carry Neville up to the Hospital Wing. "What happened?" he demanded a little too roughly and quickly apologized.

"We chased them off" Neville told Harry, brushing off his apology, "We caught one; Proudfoot is interrogating him in the Hogs Head Inn now. I think my leg is broken; he landed on it after I stunned him." Neville cursed again and Harry smiled. Neville's grandmother blushed proudly beside him.

"None of the fighters were bitten, thank goodness", Percy said. "But that boy over there was, by a fully turned werewolf, he barely looks sixteen." he said sadly. "Poor kid." Harry knew he was remembering the close call his own brother Bill had with the werewolf Greyback. Bill was bitten while Greyback was in his human form and only suffered slightly with a scar and a preference for rare meat.

"Greyback was there" Mr. Weasley said, "but he escaped up the mountain. Grawp is still in pursuit, he's impervious to werewolf bites with that thick skin of his."

"If he catches him, I hope he pounds him into the ground" Mrs. Longbottom said much to the surprise of others around her as she walked with them up to the Hospital Wing.

Mrs. Weasley and Fleur were taking the boy up to the Hospital Wing behind Neville's stretcher. Madam Pomfrey was already at his side examining his status. He was unconscious, his arm torn up and bleeding from the bite, but he was breathing. He would survive.

Everyone it seemed had turned in early that night, no one wanting to really talk about the events of the night any more than necessary. The captured werewolf was being held in an empty classroom down in the dungeons far away from the sleeping chambers, volunteers took turns watching over him until the Ministry came to pick him up the next day. News traveled down that Mrs. Malfoy and Neville would be released in the morning. The boy, a 16 year old Hufflepuff named Jordan Turner, would be staying up there for a while and he was already showing signs of turning. Professor Slughorn had started brewing Wolfsbane Potion for him in hopes to ease his future transformations.

"I don't see why he won't be allowed to stay" said Hermione at breakfast a week later after learning nothing more on the status of the boy. "Hogwarts is no stranger to werewolf students or teachers."

"It was the same werewolf, Hermione" Ron said. "And do we need to have this conversation again?"

"It doesn't matter if it was the same werewolf. There's a plan in place already for this type of situation. Jordon doesn't have to suffer as other werewolves have in the past." She said ignoring the fact that she'd been trying to stand up for Jordon for the past week.

"Oh, so now you're volunteering to march him down to the Whomping Willow every full moon?" Ron asked.

"I would" she said. "Lupin told us that with the Wolfsbane Potion he could sleep comfortably in his wolf form in his office. He said he wasn't a danger with the help of the potion. Why can't Jordan live as much of a normal life as any of us?" She asked.

"I would take him to the Willow too", said Ginny. Harry smiled at her but stayed out of the conversation this time.

"You girls have gone mad" Ron said as he piled his plate with seconds of food. "Just because Remus was 'tame' doesn't mean this kid will be. Maybe it's rough during the first transformations, and maybe he won't want to stay, maybe his parents won't want him to stay." He added.

"Well, we'll see what happens then" Ginny said. "Maybe we could talk to McGonagall and let her know how we feel?" she asked Harry hopefully.

"Sure, we'll try to catch her after lunch since she's not at the staff table now." Harry said and listened as the arguments between Ron, Hermione, and Ginny continued through dessert.

It would be almost three days before they could catch Professor McGonagall alone to tell her they were willing to help with Jordan.

"Mr. Turner will be attending Hogwarts with the precautions that were in place for Lupin when he was in my house." Professor McGonagall stated. "Madam Pomfrey and Professor Slughorn are fully prepared to handle his unique needs. The rest of the details of his accommodations are my business but I do appreciate the offers to assist." She smiled at them from behind her spectacles.

At the looks of relief and disappointment, she added "The start of the term is two days away. My suggestion is that you finish what tasks can be completed in that time and make sure you have your books and supplies in order. The house elves will be moving your belongings during the feast.

"Oh and Miss Weasley, be ready to board the Hogwarts Express at Hogsmeade Station tomorrow morning at one o'clock A.M. to head to King's Cross Station. You will be able to sleep on board. Professor Proudfoot will be escorting you." She said as she pulled a sealed envelope from her robes, handed it to Ginny, and walked away.

"Why would you be leaving Hogsmeade?" Ron asked as he peered over his sister's shoulder as she opened the envelope.

"I'm Head Girl!" Ginny said quietly, then: "I'M HEAD GIRL!" She was jumping up and down, laughing and screaming as they all congratulated her.

Hermione helped her pin the Head Girl badge to her robes as the rest of her family came running out of the Great Hall.

"Oh my word!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed as she pulled Ginny into her arms. "We are so proud of you Ginny!" she said tearfully examining the bright new badge on Ginny's robes. "This calls for a celebration." She said. "I'll head down to the kitchens and see what I can whip us up." She hurried off down the corridor leaving the rest to head back into the Great Hall.

As the Great Hall emptied around the Weasleys other students and staff members congratulated Ginny as they walked by.

Mrs. Weasley came back five minutes later in a tizzy. "Those house elves won't let me lift a finger to do anything in there. They insist on bringing us desserts 'fit for a queen' in a few minutes." She huffed and Harry laughed knowing full well house elves lived to serve and the Hogwarts elves were the most willing of all.


	10. Staff Meeting

The night before school was set to start, McGonagall met with some of the staff in her new office as Headmistress, unbeknownst to the students and volunteers below.

"I don't know what else to do" Professor McGonagall said from behind her desk. "There are more students than beds. Nearly the whole of the past seventh year students have applied to come back, confirmation letters have been sent by owls in the morning." She said hopelessly looking at a three-dimensional rendering of the castle hovering magically above her desk.

"Has this ever happened in the past?" Professor Flitwick asked, turning to the portraits on the walls.

"Never", "Not in my time" I've never heard of it" came the voices of the past. "Send them home, they should've been here like everyone else" Professor Black said from his.

"Now Phineas", Dumbledore's portrait spoke "Hogwarts has never been known to turn down a student who wished to learn."

"I will take all the extra students Hufflepuff House will hold." Professor Sprout said smiling.

"Thank you Pomona, but your house is already full, as are all the rest." McGonagall said and sighed.

Professor Nigellus was staring into the castle form on the desk. "What is housed in the South Tower?" she asked.

"It's used for old storage; I'm not even sure what is in there." McGonagall said

"So through all these repairs, no one has been up there?" Nigellus asked and would've sworn Professor Dumbledore's portrait winked at her from above the Headmistress's desk.

"I checked it myself" Professor Flitwick said. "Just old broken desks, beds, dressers, chairs, and other things unused for years, maybe centuries; most rooms are packed full of stuff. What are you thinking Jessica?"

The portrait of Phineas laughed, at the same time the portrait of Severus Snape said "Whatever she is thinking can't be good."

"I don't remember anyone asking you your opinion, Severus!" Jessica said sharply "And I'd kindly appreciate it if you did keep your mouth shut." She told him staring right into his black eyes.

"I quite agree, Severus." McGonagall said. "Please continue, Jessica.

"What if we could empty it in time? We could check to see if there are any repairable bedroom fixtures, anything unable to be repaired, we toss out for good. No reason to hold on to it."

"No, no reason to hold on to the past?" Severus sneered. Jessica ignored him.

"We have enough people here to help if we work through the night, it'll be rough work, but I think we could do it." Filius said.

"Hogwarts Charter states that all of the Houses' students stay together, I don't see how this will help in the long run. We have returning seventh years from all four houses coming, a mixed house could cause friction" McGonagall said.

"I read the letter you sent out to the returning seventh years. When a Miss Granger explained who she was and why she was here, she let me read her copy." Jessica said. "Minerva, what if an additional requirement was needed in order for these students to return? And the confirmation letter did say that the new seventh years would be assigned to classes before the returning students, so they may not get all the classes they originally had."

"We all agreed to take the additional students. We are not denying anyone a seat" Pomona said.

"But the students don't know that" Jessica said.

"Get on with it Jessica, you're as bad as your brother." Severus stated coldly.

"Thank you" she gave him an evil grin. "What if the seventh years were part of a temporary new House, just for this year? In existence for the sole purpose of housing them together as Hogwarts Charter instructs. "

"Minerva, it kind of makes sense" Horace said. "These students technically should have finished school last year and by returning no longer belong to one of the original four houses. They technically aren't eighth years as some would like to think of them. Upon completing or failing seventh year, students exit Hogwarts, their education complete. This is a new situation the founders could not have predicted." He finished proudly.

"Albus?" Minerva turned to his portrait, "what is your opinion on this?"

Professor Dumbledore scratched his chin in his portrait. "I believe the final decision would fall to the volunteer who chooses to be Head of House? If someone steps up then I don't see why a new house could not be formed for the returning students, however if no one stands, then I believe we are stuck." He said.

The other portraits spoke up, most all at once, agreeing with Professor Dumbledore's assessment.

"I see" Minerva said. "It was difficult enough finding a new Transfiguration teacher who was also willing to step up to be Head of House of Gryffindor," She inclined her head to Professor Haymaker, "I don't see how we could find someone willing in such a short amount of time. The rest of the staff has declined any promotions."

"I'll do it" Jessica said, Dumbledore smiled, Severus laughed. "It's only for one year while the returning seventh years finish their classes. My kids have agreed to be sorted. So why not?"

"A name would be your next decision." Dumbledore said looking down at Jessica.

"Hogwarts House" suggested Pomona

"Returning Seventh Years' would be a simple solution" Horace suggested.

"NEWT House?" said Flitwick.

Jessica was staring at Professor Dumbledore's portrait, who was staring back as if looking into her soul, willing her to dig deep to find the answer.

"Nigellus's Kids" laughed Haymaker. "Sorry, not too creative there."

"GRHS House' would make sense as they are all combined from the other houses. Sounds like some muggle High School moniker though." McGonagall sighed.

Jessica still stared.

"Any other suggestions?" asked Proudfoot. "Without a name, I fear this can't happen."

"Phoenixsong" Jessica whispered still staring into the ice blue eyes in the portrait of Professor Dumbledore.

"Pardon me?" "What?" "Huh?" "Speak up, please, dear." Said some of the staff around her. "She wouldn't!" Severus said with a sharp intake of breath. Dumbledore chuckled, "I believe she has."

"I said Phoenixsong. I remember Fawkes singing frequently when I was here before and it always filled me with hope." Jessica explained. "These students are coming back in with the hope of finishing their schooling; their hoping to have a home here at Hogwarts for one more year."

As if to seal the fate of the returning students a song filtered in through the open window of the Office of the Headmistress, a beautiful song that filled the room with peace at their decision.

McGonagall stood and announced: "So be it, the House of Phoenixsong is born. Now, let's find them a home."


	11. Start of the Term Feast

Harry walked with Ginny and the rest of her family down to Hogsmeade station so she could catch the Hogwarts Express to King's Cross Station. As Head Girl she had the responsibility to help the Head Boy instruct the Prefects and help keep a train full of school students in line. She was nervous but Percy spent most of the walk down giving her hints, tips, and warnings.

When they finally reached the station Bill said "Ignore Perce, you'll do fine, it's in your blood." She smiled, a look of slight relief filling her face.

"Bill's right" Harry said "You'll do fine and I too am proud of you, Head Girl" He smiled and kissed her cheek. He hoped to have had time alone with her before she left, on the walk down here, in the dark corner of the station before the train left. What had he been thinking? Of course her family would want to see her off too, would want to spend time with her before she left. He cursed his hopes but still enjoyed the walk down hand in hand with her and the few moments with backs turned the Weasley family gave them.

The train's whistle blew in warning that it was time for Ginny and Professor Proudfoot to board the train. They exchanged another round of hugs before she boarded the train. The Weasley's stood and watched as the train disappeared down the tracks.

The walk back up to the castle was silent as they all knew they had to go back to work tonight instead of climbing into warm, waiting beds. Professor McGonagall had ordered every available person to either help clean out the South Tower or repair the items once stored there. The scraps from the irreparable items were separated into piles based on materials. The wood was sent to the other side of the lake, metal into a pile just beyond Hagrid's hut, and paper into Professor Sprout's compost pile. It had been a long day already and no one was looking forward continuing. The hardest part was the lack of explanation as to why they were all pulled from completing the finishing touches on the rest of the castle.

Harry walked up the stars and found Hermione adding finishing touches to one of the rooms. It had been converted into a dorm room with five beds; she was hanging curtains on the windows. He took his wand out of his back pocket and began helping with another set on another window. Ron began making the beds up in deep rust orange bedspreads.

Like every other time he'd seen her, Professor Nigellus took one look at him and began walking in the other direction. He wondered briefly if he'd inadvertently offended her somehow.

"Excuse me, Professor" Hermione called out to the stairwell into which Nigellus just disappeared carrying a small side table.

"Yes, Dear?" Nigellus said looking into the room nervously.

"Did you want to bring that table in here? We'll move out of your way, if that's the problem." Hermione said helpfully.

"Oh… Er… Yes," she said. "I think it is supposed to come in here."

"Allow me, Professor" Harry said. Determined to look her in the eyes for the first time since he'd seen her in the Three Broomsticks he took the table from her. He saw she had dark brown-green eyes; her hair used to be black but was now streaked in places by strands of silver. She looked tired but she smiled up at Harry and said "Thank you" turned and walked away.

"What's up with her?" Harry asked when Professor Nigellus was out of earshot.

"I think she's quite nice" Hermione said, "though she insisted on sweeping the fifth floor prefects bathroom with a broom manually instead of using her wand." She noted.

"She said she preferred to do it the old fashioned way, she told me when I asked her about it. My mom doesn't even use a broom with her hands anymore. It's always flitting around with the dustpan, sometimes not even in the same room with Mom." Ron said. "Kind of weird if you ask me, but still real nice."

"She seems to avoid me" Harry said.

"Nah, that can't be, Harry. Why would a Professor avoid you?" Hermione asked.

"Dunno, but it feels like it" Harry said, giving a huge yawn.

"Maybe you're feeling overworked, like the rest of us." Hermione suggested. "I can't wait until after the feast tomorrow when we can climb into our own beds and sleep all night long." She said longingly.

By lunchtime the next day the South Tower was as finished as it could be. Everyone at the lunch tables looked exhausted and weary from the long night of repairs. Professor McGonagall took this moment to make a short speech to the volunteers.

"I would like to thank each and every one of you for all the hard work you put in to bring Hogwarts to her former glory. The West Tower, while not complete, is stable enough to allow the students near it on the grounds. Reconstruction will resume during the Holidays. For those worried, a temporary Owlery is being housed off the seventh floor in a spare classroom with large windows. When the house elves move the students' belongings during the feast, they will be moving the volunteers' belongings into Classroom number eleven.

"When lunch is over I urge each and every one of you to retire for the afternoon; rest and relax before the evenings feast. Volunteers are invited to stay and enjoy the meal as a grand thank you for all your hard work." She sat down, clapped her hands twice and lunch appeared on the tables.

Harry, Ron, Neville, Dean, and Seamus made their way to their dorm room in Slytherin House sleepily for their short afternoon naps but once their they found they were tired beyond sleep. Ron had been packing up the last of his belongings, climbing under the bed to retrieve a lost sock when he let out a billowing cry. A spider had made his home on the sock. The rest of the boys began to laugh, after a moment Ron did too, and they found they couldn't stop. One laugh led to another, and to another. Jokes started flying and it was too soon when Kreacher came in to announce that it was time to get ready for the start of the term feast.

They walked in trying to keep their composure as they entered the Great Hall. The tables were beginning to load up with students fresh off the Hogwarts Express. Harry received Hello's and Thank You's and handshakes from many of them as everyone took their seats at the Gryffindor table. He watched as Professor Flitwick walked up to Professor McGonagall and whispered to her. She stood for a brief second and said "Let the sorting begin!"

Professor Flitwick walked over to the center of the room in front of the Staff Table carrying a small stool. Upon the stool he placed a ratty, tattered, filthy old hat. Harry knew this hat was more than it seemed and he would never call it any of those things in its presence.

Professor Flitwick sat down at the Staff Table as the hat began to move. What looked like a tear near the brim of the hat opened and the hat began to sing:

_The great school of Hogwarts_

_Has seen many things_

_While students fill the halls_

_From the fall until the spring._

_It has stood sound_

_Without a scratch on the wall_

_Until a great night last year_

_When the Dark Lord did fall._

_Walls trembled, walls cracked_

_Towers toppled, towers fell_

_But Hogwarts has friends_

_Who made it all well._

_Gryffindors came from near and far_

_Bringing their bravery_

_strength, honor, and courage_

_and rebuilt Hogwarts happily._

_Ravenclaws came from here and there_

_Bringing wisdom and wit_

_Helped make sure the castle_

_Stayed strong and stayed fit._

_Slytherins came, believe it or not_

_Their cunning and pride_

_Rebuilding the school_

_Setting differences aside._

_Hufflepuffs came too_

_We all knew they would_

_Their talents so varied_

_Did everything they could._

_But now Hogwarts is full_

_Full to the brim_

_Too many students_

_Their futures look grim_

"Enough hat, end it" McGonagall said sternly.

_Ah, but not anymore_

_And I will not prolong_

_My sonnet needs to end_

_Please welcome Phoenixsong_.

The crowd all looked around in shock not knowing if it should believe the hat or not. McGonagall got off her chair and approached the hat. Harry, sitting on the end near the hat overheard her tell the hat under no circumstances was it to place students into the house of Phoenixsong. It was temporary as discussed in the office. She walked back to her seat and motioned for Professor Flitwick to begin calling names forth to be sorted.

_I only do what is asked_

_Of the original founding four_

_That if a fifth house was needed_

_It would last forevermore._

_The students of Phoenixsong_

_Have only one requirement_

_They never give up and_

_Their Hope is never absent._

"Will you be quiet!" McGonagall scolded. Harry could've sworn he saw the hat try to smile defiantly at McGonagall. She waved again to Flitwick to begin, looking a tiny bit shaken.

Flitwick began calling names.

Allen, Delores: Gryffindor!

Bablin, David: Slytherin!

The sorting when on as usual until Kirkwind, Ashley: Phoenixsong! Poor Ashley was looking around, there were only four house tables, all clearly taken by the original four houses. Ginny stood up next to Harry, gave him a small but loving push and waved the new girl to sit with her. Ashley hurried over as Flitwick called out the next name. Harry saw McGonagall fuming.

Killean, Delainie: Hufflepuff

Lavishal, Mark: Ravenclaw

McGonagall began relaxing again as more students were called into the original houses, until O'Brien, Katherine: Phoenixsong! And then they heard Oakley, Markus: Phoenixsong! McGonagall looked like she was going to take a pair of scissors to the sorting hat after the feast. Simpson, Alexander: Phoenixsong! The students joined the Gryffindor table with the others like Ashley Kirkland had.

Harry watched anxiously as the final two students, Gwen and Ryan Nigellus were called to be sorted.

Nigellus, Gweneviere: Ravenclaw! She halfheartedly joined the Ravenclaw table near the end. She would be separated from the Gryffindor friends she had made over the past few months.

Nigellus, Orion: Phoenixsong!

"His name is Orion!" Hermione leaned over the table "Harry, did you know that?"

"So, Ryan is just short for Orion." Harry said.

"Don't you get it? Harry, he's named after a constellation and his last name is Nigellus"

Harry thought about it and it began to click. The names on the tapestry hanging in his house carried names like his, all decedents of the House of Black. Harry watched Ryan take a seat next to Seamus.

"The Nigellus twins could be Sirius's cousins!" Hermione suggested.

"So. According to Sirius half the pure blood wizarding world are inbreeds." Harry said. "In order to remain so called 'pure bred' they had no choice."

Before they could delve farther into the conversation Professor McGonagall stood to address the Great Hall.

"Welcome students to a new year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am your new Headmistress Professor Minerva McGonagall. The sorting hat was correct on two points. First off, the school did suffer damages in the final battle of the war. Many volunteers showed up and many are sitting among you. A round of applause, if you please, for all the hard work they put in.

"Second point, it is true that this is the largest student body Hogwarts has ever seen and we had to make some necessary arrangements for the placement of everyone. A fifth house, Phoenixsong, was created in the South Tower to house only the returning seventh year students to make way for the incoming first years. It was supposed to be temporary; however the sorting hat saw fit to place four first years in the new house. I will explain more on that after dinner when you are all ready to head to your houses for the night.

"We have allowed last year's seventh year students to return to Hogwarts to complete their N.E.W.T.S properly. Last year's fifth year students, now in their sixth year, will be allowed to retake their O.W.L. tests with this year's fifth year class.

"I would like to take a moment now to introduce our teachers and staff members for the benefit of all:

Professor Franklin Haymaker, Transfiguration and Head of Gryffindor House

Professor Filius Flitwick, Charms and Head of Ravenclaw House

Professor Horace Slughorn, Potions and Head of Slytherin House

Professor Pomona Sprout, Herbology and Head of Hufflepuff House

Professor Jessica Nigellus, Muggle Studies and Head of Phoenixsong

Professor Angelica Proudfoot, Defense Against the Dark Arts

Professor Aurora Sinistra, Astronomy

Professor Wilhemina Grubbly-Plank, Care of Magical Creatures

Professor Bethesda Babbling, Ancient Runes

Professor Sybill Trelawney, Divination

Professor Septima Vector, Arithmancy

Mister Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of the Keys and Grounds, and Gameskeeper

Madam Helena Hooch, Flying

Madam Poppy Pomfrey, School Nurse

"Not present with us at the feast tonight:

Professor Cuthbert Binns, History of Magic and one of our resident ghosts

Mister Argus Filch, Castle Caretaker

Madam Irma Pince, Librarian

McGonagall chose to give her full opening speech before dinner when she knew she would have most students undivided attention and continued on with the usual rules about the Forbidden Forest, the ban of joke items, and adding the West Tower to the out of bounds list.

"And now, please enjoy the feast!" McGonagall clapped her hands twice and sat down to eat. Conversations along the staff table and amongst the house tables erupted as fabulous foods appeared on the table. The staff was probably contemplating the fate of the sorting hat and its loud mouth while the students began discussing the new house and staffing appointments.

When dinner and dessert had been cleared away, Professor McGonagall stood again to address the hall. "Because of the circumstances with the new house and its students, I will be dismissing houses individually to ensure the correct students go to their correct house. All Slytherin first through current seventh years please stand up." Harry watched as all but three students and Mrs. Malfoy stood. Draco Malfoy, Blaise Zabini, and Daphne Greengrass remained seated. "Those standing, please follow your prefects to your house. Thank you." She moved on to Hufflepuff, more than a half-dozen students remained at the table. Harry recognized a few of them from the DA. She instructed Ravenclaw to do the same and realized that Luna Lovegood remained seated among the returning seventh years. When McGonagall instructed the Gryffindors to do the same Harry looked around the room. He saw every surviving member of the DA was still seated, and next to them Gwen and Ryan Nigellus.

"The students still seated" began McGonagall but halted when she noticed the number of students still seated at each table. "I instructed anyone not of the returning seventh year class to go with their house, now please…"

"Excuse me Professor McGonagall" Luna interrupted

"Yes Miss Lovegood" Professor McGonagall looked strained and exhausted.

"According to the Sorting Hat the members of the new house Phoenixsong never give up hope and we never gave up hope when we stood together in Dumbledore's Army." Luna said smiling.

"I understand that, Miss Lovegood but…"

"Professor, I think what Luna is trying to say" Ginny interrupted standing "Is that the members of Dumbledore's Army held onto the hope that we would succeed when we stood together in final battle and we intend to stand together now. I mean, we hold onto the hope that you will allow us to stay together now." Ginny corrected, blushing.

Professor McGonagall stood there staring into each and every student's eyes as they all stood one by one. Harry stood last, stunned by the unification. He glanced over at the Slytherin table where the three students stayed seated, looking slightly embarrassed but mostly annoyed.

"Professor McGonagall?" came a soft, shaky voice from the staff table. "Let them stay together. If they were strong enough to stand together then, there's no harm in letting them stand together now."

The room when silent as they all stood waiting as McGonagall looked deeply at Nigellus. "Are you certain Jessica?" she asked.

"Yes, look at them Minerva. How could you deny them this?"

McGonagall looked again at the students and sighed. "Congratulations and Welcome to the new house Phoenixsong!" The Great Hall erupted in cheers, yells, and clapping.


	12. The Fifth House

Professor Nigellus called on the house elves help and reorganized the sleeping arrangements in the South Tower to allow it to house the extra students who refused to be separated. Harry thought she looked nervous at the idea of taking on the responsibility of all the others. He thought he should tell them all to go back to their own houses; there was no reason for them to give up their previous houses for him. But part of him felt honoured to see he had so many friends.

Before dismissing the Phoenixsong house, Professor McGonagall called Professor Nigellus to the podium and whispered in her ear. Nigellus blanched at McGonagall's words but nodded softly and stepped up and began to speak.

"To the students still sitting here by choice, whether that choice was returning to finish your NEWTS or by refusing to be separated from your friends, remember you are here by choice. Once we head up to the South Tower you will all belong to one house. There will no longer be any Gryffindors, Hufflepuffs, Ravenclaws, or Slytherins. You will all be Phoenixsongs. Your belongings are on the way up to the tower as we speak, your names engraved on plates on the doors.

"I have only a few small rules that will be followed by all members of Phoenixsongs above the policies of Hogwarts." She said and Harry heard a few groans from nearby students. "First rule: Discrimination of any kind will not be tolerated; previous house, birthright, and blood status do not matter here." Harry saw some students give pointed looks to the three remaining Slytherins sitting at their table alone. "Therefore the two following words are now included in the 'Forbidden Foul Word' list: Squib and Mudblood." A few students looked questioningly at her for including squib. Harry thought squib was just another word for non-magical children born to wizarding families much like Muggleborn was a word for magical children born to non-magical families but just agreed in his mind to avoid using the word.

Hermione raised her hand "Professor Nigellus, forgive me, but if we are not permitted to call them…er… that word… then what are we to call non-magical persons born to wizarding families?" Nice save, Harry thought.

Professor Nigellus gave a weak smile. "They are simply opposite of Muggleborn witches and wizards. They are simply Muggles, non-magic users who can see the magical world. No different that the muggle husband or wife who marries a witch or wizard."

"Thank you Professor" Hermione said.

Professor Nigellus looked over the students "From this point on, just to make it easier for everyone, the current seventh year class will be officially called 'Seventh Years' and the returning seventh year students will now be called 'Eighth Years'. Therefore if there are any fifth through seventh years who wish to be a prefect for Phoenixsong, please apply in my office by the end of the week. Also, since it was originally established that Phoenixsong was to be a temporary house, we will not be having a Quidditch team. The schedule has already been set and cannot be altered.

"We also do not have an hourglass for house points but that does not mean I do not expect you to goof off. Just because we cannot earn points does not mean you can attempt to lose them." She said sternly.

"I believe that covers everything. You may head off to bed now." She said smiling weakly. "Good night"

The students began leaving slowly; some of the parents saying their good-byes to their children before they left for home. A few of them went up to speak with Professor Nigellus. Harry was tired and just wanted to go to bed. He noticed George was standing between both Nigellus and McGonagall as he began to shuffle with the crowd out of the Great Hall.

One of the first year girls squealed excitedly when she reached the Entrance Hall and ran back in "Professors! Professors! Quick! Come look at this!" she squealed again. Everyone began pushing out to see what she was talking about. McGonagall and Nigellus pushed past the group just as Harry caught sight of what she was so excited about. The four hourglasses were standing proudly: Gryffindor's Rubies with a lion sitting on top, Hufflepuff's Citrines with a badger balanced on it, Ravenclaw's Sapphires with an eagle perched above, and Slytherin's Emeralds with a snake coiled above, sparkled brilliantly. But he saw on the far end a fifth hourglass, just as large, stood containing fire-orange faceted gems of Amber with a golden phoenix perched on top.

"Well, now I suppose you all must be on your best behaviour" McGonagall said. "Hogwarts itself recognizes Phoenixsong as its fifth house. Cheers erupted again as the students made their way to the South Tower.

Harry looked back to see George, Bill, Charley, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley making their way back into the Great Hall with Professors McGonagall and Nigellus. Ginny and Ron stood back to watch, wondering as the doors closed and locked in front of them. Hermione walked back to join them. Ron pulled out an Extendable Ear and fed one end under the door and held the other so the four of them could hear what was going on inside.

"Do you realize what you are asking Mr. Weasley, George?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Yes Professor" George said respectfully. "I want to do this and I promise I will not behave as I did in the past." He added.

"It is highly unusual to admit a student of your age, but not unheard of. "McGonagall said. "I must make it very clear that one step out of line could earn you a one way ticket out of here. She told him sternly.

"I understand, Professor" he said. "I feel I should finish my schooling the right way, the store has an excellent manager who can run it effectively. I think maybe if Fred and I had stayed…" he stopped. Harry could hear Mrs. Weasley crying softly.

"Minerva" Professor Nigellus said "I think he has proven his worth in Phoenixsong just by asking to come back. I know bravery is one of Gryffindor's traits, but I think we can make an exception."

"If you're sure you know what you're getting yourself into Jessica" McGonagall asked.

"Yes, I do. He knows the school rules and he was here for Phoenixsong's. George?" she paused. "Do you agree to follow the school and house rules?"

"Yes Professor" George answered eagerly.

"Very well, come with me and we'll find you a bed in the South Tower." Professor Nigellus said.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny jumped back away from the door. Ron quickly pocketed the Extendable Ears as the doors opened again.

"Shouldn't you all be upstairs?" Nigellus asked them. "Oh… you're all family, never mind then, curfew is in thirty minutes." She smiled at them and walked away.

The Weasley family, Harry, and Hermione all exchanged extended good-byes and congratulated George on returning to school. As they walked up to their tower, Ron began looking a little glum. "I was kind of hoping to go and work for Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes" he said to his feet.

George laughed. "It'll still be there at the end of the year" he said as he slapped Ron hard on the back. "Race you!" he called back behind him. The others broke into laughter and ran the remaining way to the South Tower.

Breathless they ran to the staircase at the bottom of the South Tower. There was now a door in place with a portrait of a young female witch sitting on a pedestal in a field of flame colored flowers. Her soft brown hair was draped down her shoulders and back, she had piercing ice blue eyes and wearing a dress that looked as if it was made of the petals of the flowers behind her. She looked at the laughing students with a sweet smile on her face. On her right shoulder sat a proud Phoenix at the height of his beauty, eying the students warily. When the portrait spoke, the girl merely smiled. The phoenix opened its mouth and asked "Password?"

Shocked at the talking bird, the students began mumbling that they weren't giving the password. "Hmph, No password, no entrance." The phoenix said.

"Is it Hope?" asked Hermione carefully. Harry thought she looked as if the bird were going to fly out of the painting and attack her for giving the wrong password.

"Are you going to ask questions or give me the password" the bird asked.

"We don't know the password" George and Ron said at the same time.

"No password, no entrance" the phoenix said firmly.

Harry stood staring at the portrait; something about it seemed hauntingly familiar to him but he couldn't place it. The girl continued to smile at them, still not speaking a word. Maybe it was because she knew by the looks of them that they belonged to the house she was guarding or maybe she wasn't the best portrait to guard the house, she nodded over to Hermione. Harry barely saw it over the others trying to guess the password, irritating the phoenix. Then, just as silently, she reached up as if to sooth the bird. He nipped her finger but she didn't flinch. It took Harry a second to put it together.

"Guys… quiet for a minute. Let me try." Harry said. Hermione huffed looking slightly flustered.

Harry walked up to the portrait, reached his own hand up to stroke the chest of the phoenix and simply said "Hope". The young brunette nodded. The phoenix said "About time!" and the door swung open to reveal the stairway to the dorms.

"Took you long enough!" Seamus said as they reached the common room decorated in shades that reminded Harry of a flaming setting sun, warm and inviting. "That ruddy bird give you trouble too?" He asked.

"Yea," said Ron. "Whose idea was it to station that rude thing as our guard?" He asked.

"Mine" said Professor Nigellus from the doorway. "I think he's quite good, actually. Though the girl is kind of daft at times." She smiled at the group who just entered and winked knowingly at Harry. "I would prefer my students to get a good night's sleep, bed by midnight" she said turning to go "but that is not a very firm rule." She added as she closed the door behind her.


	13. A Brand New School Year

_Death Eaters Terrorize Muggle Hospital_

_In the early morning hours six Death Eaters were seen entering Saint Victoria Hospital, a muggle medical venue. Around 3:30am this morning they were seen as they proceeded to terrorize the patients, nurses, doctors, and others nearby. One muggle was killed, many others were injured. The Department of Magical Law Enforcement arrived too late for arrests. The Obliviator Squad was sent in as were members of the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes. _

_It is not known who wore the masks or the excuses used to correct the memories of the muggle victims and witnesses. More news on this early morning attack as information becomes available. The Dept of Magical Law Enforcement has yet to issue a statement._

"Seriously!" Hermione huffed, tossing the paper aside at breakfast. "They have been beaten but they don't care! They're still off torturing and killing" she said as her voice cracked. "You-Know-Who is gone, no longer in charge of them. Why are they still doing these horrid things?" she asked, not expecting an answer.

Harry just shrugged. He had no idea what was going on in their heads, nor did he particularly care this early in the morning. He knew it would hit him later but last night was the first night in months he could finally, fully relax and let loose a bit. Phoenixsong Tower dorms had six beds per room and the house elves had placed Ron, Dean, Neville, and Seamus in his room; the sixth bed given to George Weasley. Not the best combination when none of them had any sleep the previous night. They had kept them together, he supposed, since they were all Gryffindors. The same could be said of other rooms. Hermione was still roomed with Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil and the other 2 girls she used to share with; Ginny was added for the sixth bed.

When he and the others finally stumbled into the Great Hall they were all shocked to see Hogwarts had yet again proved its acceptance of Phoenixsong by adding a fifth table. The room had widened itself to accommodate the new table, noticeable by the distance between the ends of the staff table and the walls.

The Heads of House began walking down the tables providing the students with their schedules for the term. When Professor Nigellus reached Harry, Ron, & Hermione she sat down, pulled out their blank schedules and began hand writing in their classes with ink and quill. He remembered McGonagall simply tapping her wand on the parchment and handing them over. The three friends exchanged questioning looks at her change of tactics.

"Ok. The Ministry is recommending that all students complete at least one course of Muggle Studies, mandatory for all pure bloods with no previous muggle schooling. Mr. Weasley, I believe you are on my list" Nigellus checked a piece of parchment she had in her pocket. "Yes, there you are. My seventh year class will not conflict with any of your previous NEWT classes." She looked up at his blank, questioning stare. "I promise it's just the basics and you will be with others around your own age, not stuck in the third year class." She added as Ron still stared. "Mr. Weasley?"

Ron shot a fearful glance at Harry and Hermione, as if able to read his mind Harry sighed quietly and said "Yea, we'll both take it."

"Are you sure Mr. Potter? You're not on my list and I was told you grew up with muggles." She asked.

"Why would someone tell you about me?" Harry tried to ask gently. Professor Nigellus's look she gave him in the Leaky Cauldron and her avoidance of him over the past two months weighing on his mind.

"Oh... we had an early staff meeting this morning about schedules and I needed to know each of the Eighth years previous course choices and needed to know which students to recommend Muggle Studies to. The other teachers have been quite helpful." She smiled softly and Harry thought her eyes had softened to him in the last few minutes.

"Sorry Professor" Harry said "I didn't mean to sound harsh" he added thoughtfully. She was a teacher and he needed to show her the same respect he gave most of the others.

"If it doesn't interfere with my other classes, I'd like to take it too" Hermione said smiling.

"Now Miss Granger, I know for a fact you do not need to take this course" Nigellus said smiling a little brighter. "You passed Professor Burbage's with top honours. Why would you want to take it again?"

"I enjoyed it, Harry and Ron are taking it, and a NEWT in Muggle Studies would add to my career choices after school." She said proudly, Ron shaking his head in disbelief.

"Let's see... ah, yes. It does not interfere." Nigellus smiled again handing Hermione her how complete schedule. "Here you are Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley" as she handed each of them their schedules in turn. "I look forward to seeing you all later." She got up to finish more schedules.

"Why would they do that to me?" Ron asked. "Like I need another class" he said as looked down at his new schedule. "And you two taking it will just make me look like a stupid git."

"I thought that was what you wanted, you didn't say anything, just looked at me like you needed help" Harry said. "It's mandatory for you now and she said it wouldn't be too difficult." He added.

"Don't worry Ron" Hermione added. "You have at least two classmates who are experienced in the muggle world; we'll help if you get stuck." She tried to reassure him.

"That's one less free period for homework in the other classes" Ron sulked.

"Oh, like you ever made the best of any of your other free periods for studying" Hermione laughed.

Harry laughed in agreement. "She's got a point, Ron."

"Oh great. We got her first." Ron said with a sigh. Harry was thinking Ron could go his entire life forgetting there was a muggle world around him.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione finished their breakfast then made their way to the Muggle Studies class. When they reached the room Harry noticed most of the students already there were mostly pure blood Eighth years with a handful of seventh years here and there. Draco Malfoy was sitting at the back of the room looking agitated.

When the bell rang and the class was seated Professor Nigellus stood from behind her desk. "Good Morning everyone. I am Professor Jessica Nigellus. If you have them out, please put your wand, quills, and inks away." She said standing in front of the class.

Draco Malfoy sneered "Why? Are you going to make us learn like muggles?" He earned himself a few snickers and wicked glares from his fellow classmates.

"Considering muggles learn just like you, yes, I am." Professor Nigellus replied calmly. A few more students laughed. "For our first lesson we will be reviewing what you already know about muggles." She handed a stack of paper to Ernie Macmillan who was sitting in the front row. "Please pass these out, three sheets per person, thank you." Then she handed a bundle of ink pens to Padma and requested her to do the same.

"What are these things?" Draco asked when he received his pen.

"They are called pens. They're writing utensils muggles use. They have a small tip that allows only a small amount of ink to escape as you write. Consider them... self-inking quills without feathers." she said thoughtfully. A few students who had never seen them before "Oooh'd" them as they watched ink appear as they tested them out on the paper. "Unfortunately, this is the only class where pens are permitted." She smiled a bit as she heard a few disappointed "Aaawws" around the room.

"On the board you will see five topics I wish you to cover. Your answers should be well thought out and at least 100 words per topic." She said as she pointed to the board. "I do expect each and every one of you to take this assignment seriously. It will be graded as an individual score for effort. No talking is necessary as you finish this assignment and it should easily be done in class. I want to see what each of you already know, so I can better prepare your next lessons. When you're finished, bring your completed paper up to me and if I'm satisfied, I'll dismiss you to the Great Hall Study Hall. At the end of the year, if you feel comfortable enough, you may participate in the NEWT exam."

Harry looked up to to the board to see "What do muggles eat?", "Where do muggles live and sleep", "How do muggles travel?", "What do muggles do for fun?" and finally "What separates muggles from wizards/witches?" At least it would be an easy morning; maybe he should've skipped on offering to join Ron in the class. He suddenly felt as if he was earning himself a free NEWT. He glanced over at Hermione who was eagerly scribbling an extra long answer to question number one. He couldn't help but smile as she drove into her learning mode. He could tell she missed it. Harry glanced past Hermione at Ron who appeared to be struggling, Ron looked up questioningly. Harry couldn't help but mouth the words "They're just like you" to Ron who caught on and began answering his first question with a slightly more hopeful look on his face.

Halfway through the period Draco took his paper up to Nigellus turning to leave. "Excuse me, Mr. Malfoy" Nigellus said quietly trying not to disturb the student's still working. "You need to redo this, seriously this time. I will not tolerate bashing of any kind in my class, especially muggle bashing in Muggle Studies." He snatched the clean sheets of paper she had handed him as she crumpled his previous, probably insulting, attempt at the assignment.

Harry waited for Ron to finish before getting up with him to turn in the paper. "Very good work, Mr. Potter" she said as she skimmed over his work. "Excellent effort, Mr. Weasley" she said. "You both may go to the Great Hall now."

Smiling, Ron left the room with Harry behind him. "That wasn't so bad. Thanks for the hint, by the way, but soon I started remembering things my Dad told me about muggles and it was easy. I hope she likes my answers" he said hopefully.

"She wasn't grading your answers" Harry reminded him. "She just wants to see what you already know. And no offence man, but if you went by what your dad taught you, you'd be grateful she was only grading your effort." He chuckled as Ron's face blanched. "As long as you gave well thought out answers with 100 words each, then I'm sure you passed." He added reassuringly.

Hermione followed shortly after, joining them at the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall. "I think I overdid the fun question. I ended up with 800 words because I kept thinking of fun things to do in the muggle world." Harry laughed as she began reviewing it to them. "Oh no, I forgot to add..."

Harry cut her off, still chuckling "I'm sure you supplied plenty of information. Maybe we should concentrate more on worrying what Nigellus has in store for us in the future. No magic and using pens? It should be interesting." Harry thought out loud.

"Whatever it is, it won't include electronics. Hogwarts magic is far too powerful to allow them to work within the grounds. I doubt they work in Hogsmeade either though I never tried. I don't even think there's electricity down there either." Hermione said.

They spent the remainder of the period speculating what Nigellus had planned for them, stopping to explain things to Ron that he clearly didn't understand. Ron was beginning to relax when the bell rang indicating it was time for them to go to Potions and they made their way down to the dungeons.

They entered the Potions Classroom finding it as full as it used to be when the Gryffindors and Slytherins had taken the class together. This time it was a combined class of Seventh and Eighth Year NEWT students. Harry took a seat next to Ginny, across from Ron and Hermione. This year won't be so bad he thought looking over at his Potions partner and girlfriend sitting next to him. He was worried about not performing as well in class as he had in his sixth year without the Advanced Potion-Making book personally improved upon by The Half-Blood Prince, Professor Snape. His heart lurched for a fraction of a second remembering his old Potion's Master, enemy and ally, but he shook it off quickly. He needed his wits about him to make it through class with Ginny at his side; she would be enough of a distraction alone. He hoped he could cover his naturally horrid attempts at potions by having her next to him.

"Good Morning Class!" Professor Slughorn said cheerfully to the room. "Good to see so many of you back to finish your NEWTS! Today will be a practice day because beginning next class this will be pass or fail on your brewing skills. Get it right, great! Get it wrong, well... let's not think about that because I know each and every one of you has it in you to pass!" he smiled "For fun on our first day we are all going to brew up a Babbling Beverage! Those who succeed will be permitted to test it out on one of those who do not! Don't worry, don't worry, I've got enough antidote right here!" He said patting his pocket. "Page 295 in your book, if you please; plenty of ingredients for everyone in the storeroom! Begin!" He said smiling at the room.

The noise of everyone pulling out their equipment, gathering ingredients, and shuffling their chairs was proving a distraction by itself as Harry looked into his new, unmarked copy of the book. He wondered as he looked over the recipe how Snape would've changed it, perfected it. Shaking his head clear again he began gathering his own equipment and ingredients. He looked around the room and found that everyone but he and Ron seemed to be succeeding with ease. Part of him wanted to kick himself for not staying last year, a very tiny part, but looking at Hermione's potion taking on the proper attributes it should at that stage, he thought no amount of extra lessons would help. He was going to have to buckle down and try his best.

By the end of class Harry realized he spent too much time thinking. His potion was at its final stages when Professor Slughorn called "Time is up!" Slughorn practically sang. He was right; most of the other students did succeed. Ron's was only a step behind his own. Ginny ended up giving Harry a dose of her successful potion and Hermione gave her dose to Ron. Both girls were giggling and blushing nearly uncontrollably when the bell rang from Harry's and Ron's incessant babbling about anything and everything from Quidditch to how they really felt about the girls sitting at their table.

Laughing hard Slughorn came over and gave Harry and Ron each a dose of the antidote to the Babbling Potion. "I think you two may have failed that one on purpose to allow them to give you that stuff. Got a lot of stuff off your chest, I heard!"

Harry and Ron looked embarrassed at Ginny and Hermione as the four of them made their way to Phoenixsong Tower to drop off their book bags before heading to lunch in the Great Hall.


	14. Curiosities

Harry was starting to get back into the swing of the school year after his time out hunting Horcruxes and then the stress of the final battle and its aftermath. He was relaxing into schedule for his NEWT classes though the homework amount was nothing he could've ever imagined. The only class he had no problem completing homework in was Muggle Studies. He still wondered why he agreed to take it, but when he saw Ron struggle with Advanced Modes of Transportation he remembered, kindly reminding Ron that Muggles too used trains to travel over great distances.

The Phoenixsong common room was full of studying Seventh and Eighth year students all hoping to scrape by in their finals at the end of the year. Although it was only early October, this year was proving to be the worst academically than all the rest put together. He was proving dismal in Potions and even Ron was beginning to get the hang of it he thought dimly.

"I need to take a walk" he said with a sigh putting his Potions homework away and taking his backpack up to his dorm room. He needed to clear his head and let his feet take him wherever in the castle they would lead him. As he was just about to pass Professor Nigellus's personal quarters at the base of Phoenixsong Tower she came out carrying a stack of boxes that looked as if they were about to topple out of her hands. He wondered briefly why she didn't just use Locomotor or the Levitation spell to assist her. Just as she was trying to shut the door behind her the top most box she was trying to carry began to fall. Harry acted quickly, catching the falling box and helping to stabilize the remaining stack.

"Excuse me, Professor. It looks like you could use some help, may I?" He said to her as the stack became unstable again.

"Oh... H... Mr. Potter... you startled me!" Nigellus said sounding a bit short of breath. "Yes, please! I need to take these to the Headmistress's office. They're the last of the repairable items from the cleaning." She said relieved to have some help. Harry took half the stack and followed her lead to the seventh floor corridor where the door to the Headmistress's office stood. "So... How are your classes Mr. Potter?" she asked on the way.

"They're okay" he replied. "Your class is by far the easiest, but like you said, I didn't need to take it."

"Why are you, if I may ask?" she looked at him from behind her stack of boxes.

"Er... well... "He started, but wasn't sure he should tell the truth.

"Because of your friend?" she asked with what he thought was a knowing smile.

"Er... well... yea... Ron." He finally managed to answer.

"It's ok. I understand friendship Mr. Potter. I too have had friends, believe it or not." She smiled at him, helping to relieve his nervousness.

"How about your other classes since I knew mine wouldn't be much of a challenge?" she asked.

"Oh... well... they're going good. More homework than I expected." He answered but she didn't say anything. "Potions is giving me trouble" he finally answered to break the silence.

"Hmmm... Really? I heard you were marvellous at Potions when you put your mind to it. Professor Slughorn raved about you." She told him.

"It's harder this year" he said thankful they approached the gargoyle guarding the Headmistress's office.

"Practice Breeds Perfection" Professor Nigellus said and the gargoyle jumped aside to allow them access to the slowly spinning, escalator-like staircase beyond.

They rose up higher into the tower until the stairs ended at a door. Nigellus knocked careful not to drop her cargo. They soon heard Professor McGonagall's voice as she called "Enter" and a soft click as the door unlocked.

"Ah, Jessica, thank you so much for bringing these to me. You work fast for a..." she paused as her eyes landed on Harry walking in behind her. "for a new professor just settling in at Hogwarts." She finished. "Good evening Mr. Potter." She said.

"Good evening Professor." Harry said politely. "Where would you like these boxes?" he asked.

"Just over here in the corner, I think will be fine." McGonagall answered. "It was nice of you to help Professor Nigellus."

"It was nothing." Harry answered blushing.

Harry straightened after placing the boxes on the floor where McGonagall had asked and looked up into the eyes of the last Headmaster of Hogwarts, Professor Severus Snape. But Snape didn't seem to notice Harry standing there; he was watching every move Professor Nigellus made. His eyes followed her after she placed her boxes next to his, watching as she talked with McGonagall for a moment, and watched as she tried to catch Harry's attention that it was time to go. Only when he thought he had heard Nigellus say his name a third time did Snape tear his eyes away from his Muggle Studies teacher and look directly at him.

"POTTER!" Professor Snape yelled from his portrait. "I believe you are being hailed by a teacher at this school and now I believe you owe her an apology for ignoring her."

"Sorry Professor" Harry said, pulling his eyes away from Snape's portrait.

"It's alright Harry" Nigellus said behind him. Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore told me what he did for you." Harry saw Snape sneer at her even though she was paying him a compliment, and a few portraits tried to hide snickers. Harry turned quickly to see Nigellus quickly straightening her demeanour, but still smiling. Harry turned quickly and saw Professor Dumbledore was smiling too; he winked his ice blue eyes down at Harry. "Time to go, you have homework to do and I have papers to grade." If Harry didn't think he knew any better he would've sworn Professor Nigellus had made some kind of childish gesture at Snape behind his back.

As they left the Headmistress's room and returned to Phoenixsong Tower Harry couldn't help wonder why Snape was so intent on watching the Muggle Studies teacher. Harry knew Snape had loved his own mother up until his death. He figured it couldn't be out of love that he watched her. The look on Snape's face had been blank, much like the way he'd watched the students in his Potion's classes. When he tried to explain this to Ron and Hermione back in the Common Room, they blew it off as a portrait with nothing better to do then to pretend to be asleep. Harry was still too frustrated to finish his homework tonight. He went upstairs to try to turn in early but George was in there already, sitting on his bed, studying alone.

"Sorry" Harry said noticing he had interrupted George's train of thought on his paper.

"No worry Harry" George said setting his work aside. "Not homework, inventory reports for the store. Didn't know it was going to be this hard with school and work."

"Thought you had a good manager?" Harry asked.

"She's the best at everything except predictions" George smiled. "She can't tell me what she thinks will sell the best in the coming weeks or months to know what to put on sale or what to hike prices on." He sighed. "At least it's not too much to worry about, but still work."

"Sounds interesting" Harry said genuinely. "With Halloween coming up, I'm sure many of your pranks will sell pretty well."

George laughed "That's one step better than Johnson!"

"Johnson? Angelina Johnson, our old Quidditch captain?" Harry asked.

"Yep, same one. She could tell us off and predict our plays like a queen, but at the store, forget it." George chuckled. "She's happy to be off the field, loves the work at the store, well..." George shrugged "except for this part of it. Gotta get it back to her by morning." He sighed as he pulled the parchment back up and began writing again.

Harry didn't want to disturb George but didn't want to go back to the Common Room. He quietly ruffled through his trunk for something to do when he came across the old lock box he had placed there before he left Grimmauld Place, Sirius's old lock box. He ran his hands over the box, still wondering what the contents might be.

He pulled the pumpkin orange velvet curtains closed around his bed to close out the light. The words on the bottom glowed softly, lending their light to the darkness of his bed. His eyes fell on the words left by his godfather.

"_Fill in the blanks by naming the correct letters to gain access, name any of them wrong and the contents will be lost to you forever." _

_ "First letter will be found in the middle of an undying friendship"_

_ "The second letter can be found at the beginning of a truly powerful wizard"._

_ "The third letter can be found twice in the betrayer."_

He tried to wrap his brain around the words, trying to make them make sense. He sighed deeply. His brain was too full of failures at his potions, of watching Snape watching Nigellus, of piles of homework needing to be done. He placed the lock box on his bed side table and dressed for bed. Hoping against hope, remembering what Hermione had said about Fiend Fire, he needed to recover his copy of Advanced Potion-Making from the Room of Requirement. Tomorrow was the beginning of a Hogsmeade weekend, the perfect time to dig out his old invisibility cloak and at least attempt to get his book back. He couldn't fail potions or else he'd be kissing his Auror career goodbye.

Tomorrow, he thought to himself as he pulled the bed covers over himself and fell asleep faster than he expected.


	15. Room of Requirement

The next morning the Phoenixsong Common Room was buzzing with excitement, unusual for a Hogsmeade weekend since most of the students were in their NEWT year and needed the extra time for studying. Girls were giggling and some of the guys were groaning but still couldn't quite hide that they too were excited. Whatever the reason, Harry thought, it was pretty big.

"What's going on?" Harry asked Ron who looked a bit ghostly sitting at the desk with his Charms homework in front of him. Flitwick had assigned them two feet of parchment on the _Statua Incendia Spiritus Extraho_ Charm including the proper incantation, detailed wand movements, how it was discovered, and how it could be used. All Ron had written so far was the English translation from Latin: _Imaginary Fire Breathing Dragon_. He looked exhausted.

"It's on the announcement board" Ron said quietly "Halloween Party in the Great Hall."

"Oh" Harry said, now fully understanding the looks on all the boys' faces. "Well, that is exciting, right?" he asked.

"Yea, sort of, I suppose. And it's formal dress too. Good thing Fred and George bought me the new dress robes." He said and made a face at the memory of his old maroon velvet, mouldy-laced, frilly, second hand robes he was forced to wear to the Triwizard Tournament's Yule Ball.

"Another plus side, we don't have to worry about finding dates at the last minute." Harry chuckled.

"You don't think we still have to ask them, do you? They should know we're going to take them, right?" Ron asked apprehensively.

Harry thought for a minute, thinking of Ginny and Hermione. "No, we better ask them to be on the safe side. They might think we forgot about them or that we don't want to go."

"Do we really want to go?" Ron inquired with a look of dismay on his face, like he actually did not want to attend the Halloween Party.

"I think I might actually like to go" Harry said with a small smile straightening up from Ron. "I need to go talk to Professor Slughorn." He said. "See you later at lunch" he added as he took off toward the common room exit before Ron could question him.

With everyone either on their way to Hogsmeade or planning out the night of the Halloween Dance way too early, Harry found he really didn't need his cloak or map. No one was paying much attention to him or what he was doing. The corridor to the Room of Requirement was empty. Perfect, he thought to himself as he began the required pacing and concentrating to open the door.

_I need the room where stuff is hidden_ Harry thought as he paced up and down the hallway in front of the wall where the door should open. On his third pass, the stone moulded away to reveal the door he was looking for. _YES!_ His heart skipped happily thinking only of his lost Potions book as he pushed it open. But when he opened the door all he could see where towers and piles of mostly unrecognizable blackened charred objects and ash.

He stood staring into the black mess. Even though he knew where he left the book, there was no way he could find it in this disaster. He reached out to touch what he thought used to be an old broomstick; it crumbled beneath his fingers, the ashes floating slowly to the floor. He tried a fairly sturdy looking black scarred dresser and it too disintegrated at the slightest touch. The fiend fire that had ravaged the place had eventually died out but not without consuming everything in its path, except the school that surrounded the room.

Shock wracked at Harry's brain as he slowly closed the door to the Room of Requirement behind him. He turned and faced the now plain looking wall that hid the room. His book was gone, nothing but a pile of ash probably mixed into the pile of ash that used to be the cupboard he stuffed it in. He leaned his head against the wall, disbelief slowly building to anger.

He could feel it building. Whether the anger stemmed from the fact that the Room was destroyed; from his own stupidity at believing it hadn't been; or from his own useless, pathetic attempts at potions; or something much more, he wasn't sure. All he knew was that he couldn't hold it in any longer. He pulled his hand back and struck the wall with his fist letting out months of pent up frustrations and anguish at once. His roar of rage reverberated around the corridor as did his shout of pain after his fist collided with the solid stone wall. He had heard something crack. When he looked down at his hand he could see the reds and purples of bruises blossoming quickly across his knuckles.

"That wasn't very clever" a light, lofty sing-song voice from down the hallway.

"Oh. Hi Luna" Harry said. "You saw that?"

"Yes." She said. "Here" she pointed her wand at his hand "Episkey!" she said in her usual daydream-like voice and Harry felt his hand heat up, the pain melted away instantly.

"Thanks" he said, still embarrassed someone had witnessed him lose his temper.

"Were you Snarfblat hunting too?" Luna asked curiously."I thought some were hiding in the corners of our old hideout but never could quite catch one. They like to crawl into your ears while you sleep and then when you least expect it, take control of your brain and make you do silly things."

Harry smiled. After everything he had been through with Luna there was no way he was going to argue about the existence of Snarfblats. He simply thought the truth was best. "No, I was trying to get into the Room of Requirement but it looks like it was destroyed in the Battle."

"Hmmm..." she stared dreamily at the spot where the door would normally appear "It worked perfectly last night when I asked it to let me in last year's hideaway."

"The room wasn't all burnt beyond recognition?"Harry asked curiously because the hiding room was very painfully and obviously gone.

"It looked just like we left it, like it was only abandoned yesterday." She said staring at the painting on the opposite wall, or at least that's what Harry thought it looked like she was doing.

He sighed. "Thanks for fixing my hand, see you" he turned to walk back to their Common Room.

Luna had skipped up next to him. Cheerfully she told him "The Room usually can become anything you need it to be but you have to remember to ask just right. Last week I asked it for the DA hideaway and it gave me the DA training room. I figured I simply had not asked it that I wanted the room we all used during the battle."

Harry stopped.

"Did you see a Snarfblat?" Luna whispered pulling out her wand.

"No... It's just that... what you said about asking the right thing..." he turned on his heels and quickly began the pacing, thinking _I need the room where stuff is hidden before the fire._ _I need the room where stuff is hidden before the fire._ _I need the room where stuff is hidden before the fire. _

When he stopped in front of the wall he saw it, the stone giving way to the door. He gripped the handle, afraid of what he'd find behind it.

"Aren't you going to open it?" Luna asked. Harry jumped, forgetting she was there during his concentration.

"Err... Yea..." Holding his breath he turned the knob and pushed.

The room opened up for him again, the city like cathedral sized room was before him. Towers and towers of long forgotten items unscathed by the fiend fire stood before him as far as he could see. His knees wanted to give out from relief but he forced himself to walk into the room.

Harry ran forward, past a huge stuff troll then skidded to a stop. Was it left or right? He thought briefly then ran right. At the Vanishing Cabinet he stopped, so tempted to smash it where it stood. This was the Vanishing Cabinet that Draco had used to let Death Eaters into the castle the night Dumbledore died. If he destroyed the cabinet, would it change the future or the past? Would it change anything at all or only make him feel slightly better? He wondered staring at it.

"Are you looking for something you lost?" Luna asked sounding quite happy. "I found a box by the door with my name on it." She said holding up the box to show Harry.

"I'm actually looking for something I put in here, to hide it. What's in the box?" He asked.

"Things I thought were lost forever, things people hid from me over the years. Little things I suppose they thought I wouldn't miss but I did." She said rummaging through the box. "I didn't quite think this was the lost and found. Which way now?" she asked.

"I think it's this way" Harry said turning left. After a little distance he saw the bust of an old pockmarked wizard wearing a dusty old wig, but the tarnished tiara was gone. _Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem_ Harry corrected himself. Harry figured that since they had removed the diadem horcrux and destroyed it, it couldn't return now. He realized he must be in the present. Destroying the Vanishing Cabinet wouldn't have changed anything.

Harry opened the doors to the acid blistered cupboard. Inside he saw the old cage still containing the skeleton of the strange creature with five legs.

"OH! Harry! Look!" Luna exclaimed. "It's a Dinglehopper Skeleton! My father mentioned them once, very rare creatures! Do you think anyone would mind if I sent it to him?" She asked.

"I don't think anyone would, looks like it's been here for a while." He said, briefly wondering if Mr. Lovegood was the one responsible for the creature's appearance in the first place.

As she pulled the cage out of his way he saw his book was missing, the cupboard was empty of anything except dust. Someone had removed his copy of Advanced Potion-Making; perfected by the Half-Blood Prince who had helped him well beyond potions. Harry also believed it was the Prince himself who had removed the book from the Room of Requirement but there was no way to ask him now. Severus Snape, The Half-Blood Prince: the traitor Death Eater, double agent, spy turned hero and protector, was dead.


	16. Turner's Return

The Halloween Dance was still a week away. Costumes had been prohibited for security reasons, besides in a world where ghosts, ghouls, werewolves, vampires, witches and wizards were real, why pretend to be one. Harry had already secured Ginny as his date for that night but Ron insisted, "Hermione's smart enough to know we're going together since we're already 'going together'." Harry tried explaining enough times to make his head spin but finally gave up. Harry was sure Ron would learn the hard way and thought Ron must have left his invaluable book on female witches back at the Burrow.

Harry had finally resolved to try his best in Potions and pray it was enough to let him scrape by in the NEWT exam at the end of the year. After checking every spare copy of Advanced Potion-Making he could find and discovering Professor Snape's personal quarters were still locked up tight by some spell he didn't know how to break, he decided it was long gone, lost to him forever. He considered asking Professor Snape's portrait but feared he would only get yelled at by McGonagall, Snape, or even Dumbledore's portrait for possible cheating. If Snape could figure these things out, with a little effort, so could he.

He also knew he had to buckle down on getting his homework done. Hunting for the book had him falling behind on all but Muggle Studies and Defence Against the Dark Arts assignments. The practical lessons in Charms, Defence Against the Dark Arts, and Transfiguration were getting more difficult but he was now managing to master the spells by the end of the lessons which meant less extra homework than he had earned himself in the past.

Professor Franklin Haymaker, the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, was proving to be highly knowledgeable and quite talented. His classes were kept interesting with both practice work and in class discussions on the spells they were working on. His NEWTS Classes were learning spells Harry wished he had known in the Final Battle. The only problem anyone had with Haymaker was his lack of a sense of humor, not only did he not bother with jokes, he was a bit slow on the uptake too, though nowhere near as boring as Professor Binns in History of Magic.

Harry couldn't help but let his mind wander occasionally to the outside world. Hermione's subscription to the Daily Prophet brought more and more news of death and destruction. The Death Eaters seemed to have found a rallying point driving them on in their pursuits. "_They seem to be hunting for something"_ was the assumption of the Daily Prophet's reporters. Between what looked like random muggle attacks, were cunningly orchestrated robberies and break-ins on some of the decedents of the original four Hogwarts Founders. While the last remaining line of Salazar Slytherin died with Voldemort, Helga Hufflepuff's lines stretched far and wide and were the current targets of the Death Eaters searching. Harry knew they were wasting their time if they were searching for more Horcruxes. All of those had been destroyed. He knew the only way for Voldemort to die was to make sure those evil containing objects were gone first. Harry was ever more grateful that the piece buried within him was gone, sometimes more grateful than having Voldemort himself gone.

The positive news The Prophet brought was that Auror's were still out arresting Death Eaters who participated in the Final Battle and occasionally those caught in action. Those arrested were given fair trials and only the most ruthless were sent to Azkaban. Those claiming to be under the Imperious Curse were allowed to provide character witnesses. Harry was pleased with Minister Shacklebolt's work in the past months and only rarely regretted turning down his invitation to become an Auror immediately after the battle, but he felt he could help better if he finished school first. He still had the drive to be out there to help fight the remaining Death Eaters, some days it was hard not to go out and start searching, but he had to resist until the end of the school year. Without Voldemort, the Death Eaters were still only a fraction of a threat they used to be.

Harry was sitting with Ron and Hermione while they worked on their Transfiguration homework in the Phoenixsong Common Room when Ginny came running up out of breath and looking shaken. "The Hufflepuff's" she panted "just chased Jordon Turner out of their House!"

"OH! NO!" Hermione gasped. "But... Hufflepuff's traits say that her house is to accept anyone" she pointed out.

"The House itself didn't, the students did" Ginny continued. "After Greyback, they're terrified of werewolves and it didn't matter what Professor Sprout said about the precautions to everyone's safety."

"What's going to happen to him" Ron and Harry asked at the same time.

"Don't know he's with McGonagall now," Ginny sighed sitting down.

"Do you think McGonagall will remember what we said last month?" Hermione asked.

Just then the door to the Common Room opened and Professor McGonagall and Professor Nigellus lead in a tired and very sad looking Jordon. "It's ok, I can go home" He kept saying but the two witches with him didn't seem to be listening. Professor McGonagall tapped her wand on the wall on the tower and said "All Phoenixsong students please report to your Common Room immediately" in a voice that reverberated throughout the whole castle. She turned "Mr. Turner please have some faith. Hogwarts is not an institution to give up on its students," He quieted down and sat in an armchair next to an equally sad looking Professor Nigellus.

Once all of the students were accounted for Professor Nigellus finally spoke to the room. "It's no secret in this school that Mr. Turner here is a werewolf. Due to no fault of his own he is being reassigned here in Phoenixsong House." She had a look of finality in her eyes which Professor McGonagall seemed to mirror. Many of the students looked weary or downright frightened. Harry felt slightly possessed for a second when he stood up and turned to address the Common Room full of his Housemates.

"Many of us here knew one of the greatest, most caring, and understanding werewolves ever to exist. He was one of my father's best friends, he was the best Defence Against the Dark Arts teachers Hogwarts has had in years, he was a strong fighter in the Order of the Phoenix, a wonderful father to his son, and he was one of my friends too. Remus Lupin died protecting this school, its students, and the wizarding world. He proved lycanthropy can be controlled and werewolves don't have to be evil just because they were bitten. Jordon now has the same opportunity to prove he too can live a life like Remus did, like we do."

Harry wasn't sure where his speech came from, but he let it flow from his heart as best as he could then he walked up to Jordon and extended his hand out to him and said "Welcome to Phoenixsong. My friends and I will personally help you... uh... adjust to what my dad called Remus's 'Furry little problem'." Immediately Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville, Luna, and Dean were all welcoming Jordon to the House, others quickly followed.

Jordon seemed surprised by the warm welcome and immediately was invited to sit by the fire with the four first years who were studying with a sixth year tutor Bryanna Llewellyn. She was Luna's best friend from Ravenclaw and chose to remain seated at the Start of Term Feast so they could stay in the same house together. Bryanna smiled as Jordon sat down and she began explaining what she was working on with the first years. Jordon jumped in and started helping too. Harry looked over at Jordon and Bryanna sitting together helping the first years, pleased to see a smile on the young werewolf's face.

McGonagall and Nigellus stepped up next to Harry, Nigellus placing a hand on his shoulder. "I couldn't have said anything like that better myself, Harry. Thank you." She said. "Remus would've been proud, maybe a bit embarrassed, by that speech of yours, but proud none the less." She smiled weakly at him.

"Should Mr. Turner require your assistance Mr. Potter, I do hope you will offer it to him as you offered it to me on the first day of school." McGonagall said, distracting Harry from asking the obvious question floating in his head to Nigellus.

"Of course, Professor, we would all be happy to help." Harry told McGonagall. The two Professors smiled at him then each other and left the Common Room.

Harry sat back down at the table still covered with books and parchment for their Transfiguration homework thinking about what Professor Nigellus had said about Remus. Somehow this witch from the States knew him enough to know how he would've felt had he heard Harry talk about him. Harry knew she was right, he would've been proud behind his embarrassment. He may have even have denied some of it too. But the fact their Muggle Studies teacher and Head of House knew Remus wouldn't let go of Harry, he told the others about it.

"Well now, that's unexpected" Hermione said. "She looks the right age and her accent isn't Americanized, it's closer to London maybe. It could be she went to school here. Tomorrow is Saturday, we'll go look in the library records, see if she was here and when."

"You can do that" Ron said. "Tomorrow is the Gryffindor Slytherin Quidditch game. I may be a Phoenixsong, but that doesn't mean I don't want to see our old house smash those snakes."

"I'll go with you, Hermione." Harry said. "Since I'm not playing, I don't really like watching as much as I used to." He sighed turning back to his homework and trying to put his questions aside to get it finished before he went to bed.


	17. Searching for Answers

The next morning as most of the school made their way to the Quidditch Pitch to see the Gryffindor team try their hand at defeating the reigning champion Slytherin team, Harry and Hermione made their way towards the library. Harry was still uncertain how Slytherin had won last year, probably through cheating or some other means but seeing as the school was under the control of Death Eaters last year, they could've just been handed the trophy. The Carrow's probably had a hand in it too.

They took a small detour to the Trophy Room to see if Professor Nigellus had earned any awards while she attended school. After a thorough search, they didn't find any. They did find that Tom Riddle's Award for Special Services to Hogwarts had been removed. Harry knew both Minister Shacklebolt and Professor McGonagall had issued pardons to Hagrid for being accused of opening the Chamber of Secrets over fifty years ago and with that, Riddle had to lose his award for falsely accusing him of opening it.

When they finally reached the library they found it was open despite the match out at the pitch. Madam Pince rarely closed the library for any reason during the day. Hermione had once told Harry that the library was open two hours before breakfast time and remained open until fifteen minutes before curfew every night. The only time she could remember the library being closed was for Dumbledore's funeral.

They found their way to the corner of the library that contained the school's yearbooks. They pulled out issues 1972 through 1978 figuring if they looked through the Marauder's years, they might catch a glimpse of Professor Nigellus. The first thing Harry noticed is that Hogwarts yearbooks were nothing like the yearbooks he and Dudley received from elementary school or like those Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon received from high school they had displayed on their bookcase. These were lists of students by year and house. Some students had notes next to their name for awards, accomplishments, or honors, one student had a note stating he had been withdrawn from school, another indicated she passed away of dragon pox during the school year.

Only the graduating class had photographs, all taken as they accepted their certifications. When they reached the last issue's graduating class photos they had to hide their laughter. James Potter's picture depicted him pumping the air as he collected his certification. Remus Lupin appeared to be howling to the sky. Sirius Black was bowing to the audience. Peter Pettigrew was jumping up and down as if in disbelief. Lily Evans looked humble and proud, smiling like many of the other students in nearby pictures. There were a few other students who chose to express themselves in their photos but those were rare.

There were no references or pictures of a Jessica Nigellus. The only Jessica in all seven years they found was a very short, heavy set Slytherin girl with short white blond hair, a too wide bulbous nose and narrow set bug-like eyes. Even when they went back and checked six years before and after the Marauders walked the halls of Hogwarts, they found no other Jessica. Professor Nigellus did not attend Hogwarts as far as they could tell. They left the library believing that she had to have met Remus after he had left school.

The yells and cheers from the pitch were echoing into the Entrance Hall as Harry and Hermione were making their way back to the Phoenixsong Common Room. They paused to listen. "Gryffindor! Gryffindor! Gryffindor!" they could hear the crowd making their way back to the castle. "We won!" Harry said excitedly. Hermione laughed. "No Harry, Gryffindor won. Phoenixsong doesn't have a Quidditch team this year." She tried to make it sound kind and not patronizing but Harry knew she was laughing at his excitement over the match and not his mistake.

They began their way back to their tower when a few seventh year Gryffindors called out as they entered the castle "Party for Gryffindor in the Great Hall! All houses invited! Come on Harry!" he added as he saw them heading down the hallway. Hermione took one look at Harry and laughed as she said "What are you waiting for? Go! I'm going to check one more place, I'll let you know if I find anything" Harry excitedly joined everyone in the Great Hall for celebration as Hermione made her way back up the hallway.

The Gryffindor party broke off to their Common Room when Professor McGonagall announced it would be inappropriate to continue celebrating in the Great Hall once dinner began. Hermione came down with the information she gleaned from the ghosts. Myrtle, The Grey Lady, The Fat Friar, and most others don't remember her. They say they only met her this year. The Baron wouldn't talk to me and Nearly-Headless Nick has been celebrating down here.

As customary of Nick's habits, he was floating up and down the Gryffindor table talking to the few who remained to eat normal food rather than the sweets and treats provided upstairs. When Nick passed close enough Hermione called out to get his attention and he floated over.

"Ah Miss Granger, how good to see you." Nick bowed, his head dangling dangerously by the thread of skin under his poof. "How may I be of assistance?"

"We were wondering if you happened to know Professor Nigellus." Hermione asked.

"Wonderful teacher I've heard, and a pleasant lady to speak with too I must add." Nick said.

"Well... What I meant was... do you know if she was a student here when she was younger?" she asked.

"Oh... well... let me think a moment." Nick answered however as he appeared to be thinking of the answer he began looking around the room almost nervously. "Well... can't say that she was, sorry Harry, Hermione. I think I see one the other ghosts hailing me. If you will please excuse me." He said and floated off in the direction of the Entrance Hall.

"What do you suppose made him leave like that?" Hermione asked Harry.

"Maybe she wasn't a student here, but maybe she visited once?" was all Harry could come up with.

"Maybe, but then why not just say so and be done with it?" she asked but Harry just shrugged. "And if she did visit, who was she here to see and where did she visit from?" she went on but again Harry shrugged.

"Maybe it was as we originally thought; she met Remus sometime after he left here. You know as well as I do that Nick has his moments. Maybe it was the Baron calling him, none of the ghosts like interacting with him." He finally said finishing his desert.

"Maybe." She said thoughtfully. "Want to work on our Herbology homework tonight or wait until tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow, I think. Ron's probably upstairs at the Gryffindor party."

"Hmph! don't talk to me about Ron tonight. Do you know he still hasn't asked me to the dance?" Hermione said angrily.

"But you two are already going out, so wouldn't you already be going to the dance together?" He asked feeling sorry for both Ron and Hermione.

"You asked Ginny and you two are already going out." She said pointedly.

"Er... Well... Yea... I did ask her but only because it looked like a few seventh year Gryffindors were going to try to ask first."

"Well I have been asked by someone else. I told him I was waiting for Ron to ask and if he doesn't I just might go with him." She huffed.

"Who?" He inquired. "If you don't mind me asking."

"I'm not telling." She said as she gathered up the few items she brought with her on her quest to the library. "I am going to go up to work on my Herbology report!" she snapped. Harry wondered what he did to get her upset at him over a simple question. It was Ron she should be snapping at, not him.

Harry got up slowly from the table and began making his way back to the Common Room. His search for the book had been a bust, his search to find the connection between Nigellus and Lupin had been a bust. He didn't feel like working on homework, though he knew he still had a little catching up to do. He wandered around the castle for a while before deciding to head out to Hagrid's hut for a visit. He had been down a few times with Ron and Hermione to visit but he hadn't been out by himself yet.

He knocked on the door and could hear Fang begin to bark. "Quiet down yeh mutt" he heard Hagrid bellow as he opened the door. "Harry! What brings yeh down here teh see me?" he asked making Harry feel slightly guilty.

"Sorry Hagrid" he said. "NEWT years are tough."

"Yeah, I know. Been rememberin' other seventh years and their troubles too." Hagrid said. "Well come on in. Just made a pot o' tea, got some rock cakes in the oven now, best when they're hot, yeh know."

Harry walked into the toast warm hut, a welcome feeling from the chilly October air outside, and sat down at the huge table. Hagrid poured him a huge mug of tea while Fang drooled on Harry's lap and poured himself a huge mug of Firewhiskey spiked tea.

"So... er... When are you planning on going back to teaching Care of Magical Creatures?" Harry asked. They hadn't asked before assuming Hagrid was too busy with repairs to the school but repairs had been put on hold until Christmas break when there would be hardly any students around.

"Oh... I'm not. I loved teachin' an' all, but with Grawpy comin' along like he is, thought it best to resign as Professor an' teach him more. He's gettin' so good at talkin' and behavin' in public. He made right work of the west tower an' keeps askin when he can help more."

"That's great Hagrid. Just curious, where is he staying?"

"Still out in the Forest fer now. McGonagall's thinkin' 'bout lettin us build a bigger two-man hut. Once he gets his temper under control tho, can't have him throwin trees 'round yeh kids, yeh know. But he's gettin better."

"I know this is a long shot but how well do you know Professor Nigellus?" Harry dared asking, he didn't know why.

"Oh Jessica is a great girl, great girl. She's gotta way with the animals 'round here I ain't seen in years from anybody. She gets them cats followin' her 'round like she's got catnip in her pockets." He laughed. "Yeh should see 'em paradin' the grounds. Even Hermione's ol' Crookshanks ain't immune to her spells. Great girl, big heart, poor thing though. Just found out last week her husband died in the war." He shook his head a bi. "Just don't let that out, don't think she wants it known, don't take to sympathy, she doesn't. She's proud of him for fightin' on the good side for so long." Hagrid pulled out his tablecloth handkerchief and blew his nose. "Great girl that Jessica is."

"Don't worry Hagrid; I won't say anything about it if she doesn't want it known. Do you know who her husband was?

"Er... Well... I can't say Harry, she only trusted 'cause she knew me long ago, was a good kid then too."

"She was a student here?" Harry asked. "She said she knew Remus Lupin, knew he was a werewolf too."

"I'm not supposed teh talk about her past Harry. She asked me not to. Please don't ask anymore than I already told yeh. I'm sorry Harry, I really wish I could. I'm sure she'll tell yeh when she's ready."

"I understand Hagrid, thanks." Harry said, pretending to enjoy his rock cake. "You know, these are better when there fresh out of the oven." He added honestly.

They sat and caught up on other things from the summer to Hagrid chasing down some wild nifflers, offspring of some runaways a year ago, last week. When curfew came along Harry said goodbye and made his way back to the castle uncertain it would be appropriate to tell Hermione what he learned or not.


	18. The Halloween Dance

The week preceding the Halloween Dance was fairly calm, as far as Harry was concerned. His teachers apparently felt that any homework assigned over the weekend wouldn't get finished or if it did, it would be half-hearted or the students would be coming into class Monday morning exhausted and unprepared for learning.

He had spent the week pondering what Hagrid had told him about Professor Nigellus and had respected his wishes about not telling anyone. He did however spend a lot of time telling Ron he had better ask Hermione to the dance or he would regret it. As far as Harry could tell, Ron never bothered to ask, still insisting that Hermione should know better.

So on the night of the dance, hours after the girls had gone up to get ready, the boys went finally went up to their dorm to prepare themselves. Harry's black robes with green piping were in pristine condition, thanks to Kreacher, and fit him perfectly. Ron looked much happier pulling on the robes his brothers bought him, black also with Gryffindor red trim and smiled at himself in the full length mirror. Harry made a futile attempt at brushing his unruly hair but gave up quickly. George was attending too and received special permission from McGonagall to invite Angelina Johnson as his date, and the way he was talking about her made Harry believe there was more to hiring her at the joke shop than her managerial qualities. Dean, Seamus, and Neville all had dates too and when the all of them were ready they made their way down to the Common Room.

The girls made their way down the stairs from their dormitory looking breathtaking. Harry felt his heart stop as Ginny came into view in a long flowing emerald green dress. Hermione had used Sleekeasy's Hair Potion again to tame her bushy curls. She let her now smooth long brown hair flow freely down her back and the mauve dress she chose made it look like she was blushing. But when Ron went to take her hand to lead her out of the Common Room she pushed past him and left on her own.

"What's wrong with her?" Ron asked.

Ginny looked quickly at Harry then turned on her brother as if they were standing alone in the kitchen of the burrow. "You're a good for nothing git Ron! How dare you expect her to assume you wanted her to go to the dance with you if you were too stupid to ask her! She waited as long as she could for you to let her know you even wanted go and yet you still said nothing! The only thing she could assume was that you weren't going! She got asked by someone else and took him up on the offer yesterday. Come on Harry; let's go before I remind him how good I am at the Bat-Bogey Hex, please." She added taking Harry's frozen outstretched arm and pulling him out the door.

The Great Hall had been decorated brilliantly with Hagrid's giant pumpkins, all glowing with candles, lining the walls. The floating candles that usually illuminated the room were changed from traditional looking white tapers to black tapers with blue flames. The house tables were replaced by smaller round tables each with black dark purple tablecloths, small black iron candelabras with orange tapered green flame candles, and small centrepiece pumpkins carved into jack-o-lanterns and animated to laugh or scowl. The staff table was also removed from its platform and replaced a small ghostly orchestra. Harry's heart sank. The last ghostly music he heard could be compared to someone trying to play a handsaw with an iron bow. After all the students were seated the tables filled with snack foods, small appetizers, and pitchers of pumpkin juice and butterbeer. When the music began to play it was hauntingly beautiful and serene.

Ron kept peering around the room looking for Hermione but with no luck. He picked at the food on his plate as dancers began filling the open floor. Gwen and Ryan came up to join the table looking sullen.

"No dates either?" Ron asked unenthusiastically.

Gwen chuckled. "No, too many asked so I decided to turn them all down. Leaves my dance card open for the night." She smiled wickedly at Ron.

"Mine went to the Ladies Room already to 'powder her nose'. Ryan said. "I don't think she wants to be here with me." He sighed.

"Who did you come with" Ron asked, a worried look on his face.

"Astoria Greengrass, sixth year Slytherin. She started drooling over that Malfoy boy as soon as got here." Ryan answered and began picking at some pumpkin pasties sitting in front of him.

Within minutes of the twins sitting down a seventh year Hufflepuff came up and asked Gwen to dance. It looked like her night was going to be full after all, Harry thought. Then Astoria came up to Ryan and they too hit the dance floor. Harry decided he had better dance with Ginny at some point tonight and she was already looking annoyed and knew now was better than later.

They joined the others on the dance floor. Harry couldn't help but notice Ron now sitting alone at the table they left. "So... Who did Hermione come with?" he asked Ginny.

"Anthony Goldstein, eighth year, used to be Ravenclaw." Ginny answered. "Ron deserves it, you know."

"Maybe" Harry said, "but this is the 1990's, Hermione could've asked Ron too." But at the look of fury beginning to burn in Ginny's eyes he quickly added "I know it's not the most traditional route, and you're right, Ron should've asked." Unless he wanted to be sitting alone at the table with Ron, he had better keep his mouth shut on that subject. He tried to enjoy a few faster dances in the crowd and really enjoyed the slow dances holding Ginny as close as the teachers would allow but they both were getting tired.

When they returned to the table they found Hermione sitting opposite Ron staring away from him. Ron was trying not to look at her and failing miserably; it looked as if he wanted to ask her something but not coming up with the nerve. Ginny sat next to Hermione and the two of them began a whispered conversation now both ignoring the guys sitting opposite them.

Harry sat next to Ron "Did she say anything since she sat down?"

"Yea..." Ron sighed. "She said 'All men are...' well... then she let loose words I never thought I'd ever hear her say. Saw her dancing with that Anthony in our Charm class but now he's off snogging with Lisa Turpin at the table back there." He pointed over his shoulder behind him and Harry saw Anthony and Lisa in a dark corner locked together.

"Ron... just get up off that chair, stop feeling sorry for yourself and go fix this mess. Go ask her to dance. Be a man and take her back!" Harry said, tired of his friends fighting. Every time they fought in the past, he was stuck in the middle. At eighteen years old, they were old enough to fix this themselves and he was tired of trying to mediate.

"I don't know Harry; she did come with someone else."

"Ron, if you love her you'll march your butt over there and ask her to dance. If you don't love her then call it off completely."

"If I love her? Of course I love her!" Ron said indignantly. "You're right. I'm going to ask her and be damned with the consequences!" Ron stood up, pushed his chair in while gathering his resolve and did march right over to Hermione. He bowed slightly "Hermione, I was an arse, please forgive me for not asking you to come with me tonight. Dance with me? Please?"

Harry had to hide his laughter behind a cough. He admired Ron for his bought of bravery and apparently, so did Hermione. She took his and with tears sparkling in her eyes, let him guide her out to the dance floor.

"Whatever you said to Ron to make him do that, was perfect." Ginny said planting a kiss on Harry's lips.

"You ready to go back out to dance?" Harry asked.

"Maybe next slow one, I think George cursed my shoes too tight. They fit perfectly yesterday but now they're too tight. He's been playing with more pranks lately."

"Tell me about it, I walked in on him in the dorm last week messing with more sweets." Harry laughed. "Hey... why don't you take off your shoes and you can stand on mine so I don't step on your toes?" he asked.

Ginny laughed "That's the silliest, sweetest thing you've ever said to me Mr. Potter." she kicked off her heels and walked with Harry back out for the remainder of the song with her toes standing on the tips of his shoes, both of them laughing. When they caught sight of Ron and Hermione dancing together, they could see they had made up and were smiling together again.

"What's wrong with Professor Nigellus?" asked Ginny, pointing over to where some of the staff was sitting. Madam Pomfrey was sitting next to Nigellus, looking as if she were trying to consol the Muggle Studies teacher. "It looks like she's been crying and Pomfrey's giving her something."

"Er... I'm not sure." Harry said thinking of what Hagrid had told him, knowing it wasn't his place to tell anyone. "Maybe she's not crying and she's just stressed about being in the same room with all these people. You've seen how she is when the Common Room is full and she always has a frazzled look about her."

"Hmmm... Maybe you're right." Ginny thought but Harry could see she had the look in her eyes as if she knew not to believe everything he was telling her.

As the dance came to an end Harry and his friends walked up to the Common Room together all chattering about how much fun they had, of who was snogging who now, and hoping that Hogwarts would return to its standard of having more dances throughout the year as they did over twenty years ago.

"Hey Gwen?" Harry heard Ginny ask. "Is your mom ok? I mean, is Professor Nigellus ok?" she corrected.

"Around us, you can call her our mom, no problem with me." Gwen stated. "She'll be ok." She sighed. "Today was her anniversary and our dad died in the war, she just has trouble adjusting."

"Are you ok?" Ginny asked.

"Oh yea, I'm fine. I never had the pleasure or well I dunno... displeasure... of ever meeting him. Don't know much about him either."

"She never told you about him?" Ginny asked.

"Well, yea, she talked about him, told us what he was like and stuff like that. He was sweet, honourable, blah, blah, blah. But there's only so much you can accept about one person's opinion versus the consensus opinion. And Mom never told us his name. Up until last week it was to protect us, now... I guess it's a waiting game until she's ready to spill the beans. Believe me, we've asked around, but if anyone knows, they're not saying."

"That's sad" Hermione said. Harry noticed the whole group had stopped to listen to Ginny and Gwen's conversation, including him. Ryan was looking at his feet, studying his reflection in his polished shoes, while Gwen explained; not offering anything either way.

"It is what is." Gwen sighed. "Just don't say anything, ok?" she asked. They all agreed to drop the subject and finished their journey to bed.


	19. The Puzzle

The students were talking about the Halloween Dance for weeks after it occurred. They loved the ghost band, the dancing, the food, the dancing, the decorations, and of course the dancing. Harry too had had a great time with Ginny. When the dance was over they had spent at least an hour snogging in the corner of the Common Room before Professor Nigellus announced that it was time to quiet down. Some of the other students decided to continue the dance by playing the wireless and nicking pitchers of butterbeer from the Great Hall.

It felt like the Professors had issued double homework since the dance and most of the seventh and eighth years spent all their free time working. The books piled up on the desk Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny were working at covered all available space. A few of the others had already made trips to Madam Pomfrey for Calming Draught with the extra workload and Harry felt more would be going before the end of the term. Tonight he felt like he too was barely hanging on as he looked at everything that needed to be done.

"I think we need a small break." He said to the others at the table.

"Oh, good" Hermione said. "I was thinking the same thing but was afraid you'd think I'd gone crazy."

Ron laughed "You're right, we would."

"I'll go down to the kitchens and get us some snacks" Ginny said.

"Why go? We could just ask Kreacher" Harry suggested.

"I'll go with you Ginny" said Hermione standing a bit angrily. Harry knew she still felt like asking the house elves for help was encouraging their slavery, but Kreacher seemed to enjoy his work. She still had no problem going to the kitchens for elf-made food.

The girls left the Common Room while Ron and Harry discussed options to waste a few hours. They turned down Wizard Chess, Exploding Snap, and other favourites of theirs they knew the girls wouldn't like.

"Harry" Hermione said when they got back carrying pumpkin juice and small sandwiches, "Why don't we work on Sirius's puzzle tonight?"

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yea, it'll be like a game." Ron said.

"What puzzle?" Ginny asked.

"I'll explain while he gets his the box. Go on Harry." Hermione said and Harry ran up the stairs to get the lock box he found under Sirius's bed in Grimmauld Place.

He picked up the box and stared at it for a minute. They were really going to try and open the box. He turned it over to look at the clues and realized he couldn't see them in the light. The lighting in the Common Room was brighter than the dorm room. He climbed on his bed, drew the curtains tight, and watched the words appear. He took one of his quills and traced the outlines of the answer boxes Sirius drew and carefully copied the puzzle clues onto a piece of parchment by wand light. When he pulled his curtains open he saw his lines on the box were visible. He carefully carried the box downstairs to the Common Room where the others were waiting and placed it upside down on the table.

"The clues are only visible in the dark so I wrote it out and I traced the answer boxes just in case we get it done." Harry explained and placed the piece of parchment on the table so everyone could read.

"_Fill in the blanks by naming the correct letters to gain access, name any of them wrong and the contents will be lost to you forever." _

_ "First letter will be found in the middle of an undying friendship"_

_ "The second letter can be found at the beginning of a truly powerful wizard"._

_ "The third letter can be found twice in the betrayer."_

"Oh..." Ginny said. "This is more interesting than you made it sound Hermione, and looks hard. Any ideas what's inside?"

"No idea" Harry said.

"Ok. So we need to fill in the boxes with letters. Let's write them down here until we're absolutely positive we have it right." Hermione suggested.

"And they have to be important to Sirius" Ginny said. "Otherwise they're just random thoughts and could be anything."

"Right" Harry said. "Number 2 looks easiest, D for Dumbledore." Hermione wrote it down in a box she drew on a scrap of parchment.

"Wouldn't the last one be E?" Ron asked. "It's in the word twice." Hermione wrote it down too.

"The first one wouldn't make sense if we used the words, you'd think he wouldn't make it so easy as to count out the letters to get R, would you? Ginny asked.

They stared at the clues some more, wondering what Sirius had going through his head when he wrote them.

"In the instructions, he mentions 'name' twice. You don't think he wants us to concentrate on people's names, do you?" Hermione pointed out. "He says 'Fill in the blanks by _naming_ the correct letters to gain access, _name_ any of them wrong and the contents will be lost to you forever.' He wasn't the type of person to repeat things unnecessarily."

"You're right, he wasn't" Ginny said. "I think they are names."

Hermione cleared the E and R out of the first and last box on her parchment.

"Do you think it spells a word?" Ron asked.

"It might, there are a lot of words that have only three letters in them." Harry said thoughtfully looking at the clues again.

"Harry..." Ginny said thinking "The first clue 'The First letter will be found in the middle of an undying friendship', didn't he always claim your dad was still his best friend even after all these years?"

"Yea, he did."

"So would it be an M for the middle of James, P would be the middle of James Potter, but there isn't really a middle to Potter unless you use a T. "Ron rattled.

"I'll write them all as answers and then we can discuss the best." Hermione said.

"Oh! Harry! I think I got number three!" Hermione said excitedly. "It's P, for Peter Pettigrew. It seems most obvious. Sirius always called him a betrayer!"

"He also always called him Wormtail." Ron said "but there aren't any repeating letters in Wormtail." He corrected himself.

"Are we all agreed the last letter is P?" Harry asked and they all answered yes. He pulled out his wand, and much to the arguments of those around, him wrote the letter P in the third square with the tip. The letter began to glow faintly blue then dimmed until it set itself permanently as if Harry had etched it in with a knife. "I guess we got that one right." He said staring at the now filled in square on the bottom of the lock box. One step close to learning what was so important to Sirius and only two more clues to go.

"The second one is A" Luna said standing over Harry's shoulder looking down at the clues. 'The second letter can be found at the beginning of a truly powerful wizard' and his first name was Albus." She said in her light airy voice as matter-of-factly as she could.

"I think she's right" Hermione said and wrote it down on her parchment as Harry pulled his wand out again and filled in the middle box with the letter A. They all watched as the letter began glow and etched itself in the metal of the box.

"She was right, thanks Luna" Harry said as Luna sat down on the other side of Ginny to read over the first clue with everyone else.

"I think it's got to be M, the middle of James. Sirius would never go around calling his best friend James Potter all the time; he would refer to him as James." Hermione said.

"I think your right, but we've only got one change to get it right." Harry said.

"Nah, looks like we each might all have a shot at it. The instructions say name any of them wrong and the contents will be lost to _you_ forever." Neville smiled as he sat down next to Ron. "So if you put an M in there and it turns out to be a P then someone else can try again. Come on Harry, put the M in. I think we're all curious to see what happens."

"Ok... Here goes" Harry picked up his wand again, carefully writing the letter M in the first box. The letter began to glow and nearly a dozen people cheered. Harry looked around and saw George, Dean, and Seamus also cheering that the puzzle was complete. It seemed they all had stopped to see the interesting "game" they were playing. To Harry it wasn't a game. It was his godfather in that box, or at least items that were important to Sirius.

Once the letter M had stopped glowing and etched itself into the metal of the box Harry heard a soft metallic click. The box had unlocked, the contents were now accessible. He carefully turned the box over but was frozen. He couldn't open it just yet.

"I think Sirius meant for me to see the things inside in private." Harry said. "Thank you, all of you for helping, I appreciate it, but I think Sirius would've wanted to share these with me alone."

"Hey, no problem, man" George said getting up and walking away with the others. His friends seemed to understand his wishes and respect them. The only ones remaining at the table were Ron, Hermione, and Ginny.


	20. The Letter in the Box

A/N: This is the part of the story that started it all. I hope you enjoy reading it.

Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny decided the best place to find privacy was up in the boy's dorm room. They headed up the stairs into the room; Hermione cast a silencing spell to seal the room from eavesdroppers and then magically locked the door to prevent intruders. They all climbed onto Harry's bed to get a better look at the contents.

With shaking hands, unsure of what to expect, Harry opened the box. Nothing strange happened and as far as he could tell all it contained were random items, photographs, and parchment. He pulled out the top most sheets of parchment, folded in thirds, with his name written across the front, opened it and began to read it out loud for Ron, Hermione, and Ginny's benefit.

_Dear Harry,_

_Sorry about the pass code but I didn't feel like sharing with just anyone._

_The contents of this box are nothing more than a sentimental old man's memories. If you're reading this without me, then now they're just trinkets of the past, well, your trinkets now. Do with them as you wish after I tell you their stories:_

Harry reached into the box and pulled out three photographs; an old parchment envelope with a broken seal, a water stained, illegible address to somewhere in London; a dog collar; a thin, small wand; a golden pocket watch with Sirius's name engraved on the back; a small vial of a cloudy, milky, swirling liquid that was unmistakably bottled memories; and a plan gold band style ring. Curious, he turned back to Sirius's letter, his eyes falling on a single tear drop stain on the margin of the page.

_Most of the items in here are tied to a very special woman in my life, someone I should have told you about in person a long time ago. Since I never heard you mention her name, I'm assuming the Dursley's never told you about her either but I'm not sure they even knew she existed. _

_Her name was Jessica Isabella Potter._

_She was your father's twin sister, your Aunt Jessie, and for a short, sweet breath of time, my wife._

_We lost her the same night your parents died, to Death Eaters._

Harry looked shocked at the letter then back to the items on the bed. He had more family but lost her to the same evil that took his parents. "Oh Harry, I'm so sorry" whispered Ginny from beside him. He took a deep, steadying breath, settled his mind and began to read again.

_Harry, please forgive me for not telling you sooner. Remembering her is still painful and I hope I have the courage to tell you about her myself and not like this._

_On to the photos, if you please. _

_In one you'll find us, the Marauders with Jessie in front of your Grandparents fireplace the last day of Easter break our fifth year. Your brave grandparents made it a tradition after our first year. _

Harry saw younger versions of Peter Pettigrew, his father James, Sirius, and Remus Lupin with a pretty girl with long black hair standing in the middle. They were all smiling and laughing arm in arm.

_In another you will find four standing together; Jessie, Lily, James, and me at our combined graduation party. Your grandparents were equally proud of all of us. Remus would've been there too had it not been the full moon and Peter, for some reason, never felt comfortable under your grandfather's watchful eye. He stayed with Remus during the party, James and I snuck off later that night to join them._

In this picture Harry saw James and Lily beaming into the camera, arms wrapped around each other's waists. Jessie and Sirius, at opposite sides of the picture appeared to have slightly strained smiles and kept shifting slightly, uncomfortably.

_The last was taken on our wedding day._

Harry picked up the last picture and studied it. Sirius hadn't given any information about it. The photo showed seven people all smiling out at the camera. The bride, his Aunt Jessie he corrected his thoughts, wore a basic set of white dress robes and appeared to be blushing. The best man and bride's maid Harry immediately recognized as his parents. While his mother looked ecstatic, his father appeared barely thrilled though smiling. And Sirius in the groom's spot was smiling a more brilliant, bigger, happier, smile than Harry had ever seen on his face. In the short time Harry had known Sirius; he could tell instantly that this was a moment when he was truly happy.

"Hey, that's Kingsley and McGonagall" said Ron looking at the picture. "And there's Dumbledore" added Hermione.

"Yea," said Harry, "it looks like it was taken in his office."

Harry went back to the letter hoping for more information but Sirius wasn't delving any deeper and was moving away from it.

_The first item I would like to point out is the wonderful gift Remus gave me when I came of age; the collar. It came with the dare. I had to wear it all of the first term of our seventh year. If I failed, Remus promised to place a charm on it forcing me to wear it for the rest of the year. If I completed it, Remus would wear it the rest of the year. Your wonderful Aunt decided to parade me around the lake, twice, with a leash on the last day as an attempt to embarrass me into taking it off. I won._

_I received the pocket watch from your grandparents that birthday. I hope I am the one to buy you yours next year._

_The ring is fairly self-explanatory as my wedding ring. The only reason I took it off was so I didn't lose it._

_Inside the envelope you will find a copy of our unfiled marriage certificate._

Again Sirius wasn't divulging information and Hermione was already opening it gently. With a soft gasp the envelope flittered to the bed, her hand began to tremble, and tears began to fall down her cheeks.

"Harry, I…. I... I can't" she cried as she handed the certificate to Harry and she jumped up to grab some tissues. Ron moved closer to read it with Harry.

_**Groom: Sirius Black**_

_**Witness for the Groom: James Potter**_

_**Bride: Jessica Isabella Potter**_

_**Witness for the Bride: Lily Evans Potter**_

_**Witnesses required by the Ministry of Magic: Minerva McGonagall, Kingsley Shacklebolt**_

_**Officiate: Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore**_

_**Location: Office of the Headmaster, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry**_

_**Date: Thirty First of October, Nineteen Hundred and Eighty One. Eight Thirty Five Ante Meridiem**_

Harry couldn't believe his eyes. No wonder it hurt Sirius so much to think about his wife. Before midnight on their wedding day, she would be dead. They were married for less than 16 hours and the certificate was never officially filed. Harry could feel the pinpricks in his own eyes, Ginny had joined Hermione at the tissue box, and Ron coughed in a way that sounded suspiciously like he too was trying to hide his emotions as he took Hermione's hand and lead her back to the bed. Harry put the certificate back in the envelope and placed it gently back in the box with the photos. Harry returned to the letter and tried to make his voice sound stronger than it felt.

_The wand was Jessie's. The only thing I have left of her other than my memories. I have included a few of those to let you know what she was like and a few to help explain a few things better than I ever could on parchment or in person._

_Again I ask that you please forgive me Harry and I hope someday I'll be able to tell you about her properly, in person. If we make it through this, succeed against _Harry read the name Voldemort as a very colorful explicative,_ I promise to tell you all about her and answer any questions you might have._

_Love, _

_Sirius_

Harry gently placed the objects back into Sirius's lock box. As he came to the photo of the graduation party, he hesitated for a second then slipped the photo into the pocket of his robes. That was his family in that photo; his mother, his father, his Aunt Jessie whom he never knew about until now, and his Uncle Sirius. He gently closed the lock box and set it on his bedside table.


	21. Kidnappings

When Harry woke the next morning he was still a little angry and confused by Sirius's letter. He had an aunt that no one bothered to tell him about because she was dead, killed by Death Eaters the same night his parents died. Why hadn't anyone bothered to tell him? Was she that unimportant? Unworthy of mention for some reason?

Harry wandered down to the Great Hall for breakfast with the photo of his family still in his pocket. Ron and Hermione were already at the Phoenixsong table. He sat across from them and began shoveling food onto his plate, ignoring whatever banter they were sharing.

The morning owls had begun swooping down, delivering mail, packages, and newspapers to the students. Hermione's copy of the Daily Prophet was delivered as usual. Harry had to pick up his glass of pumpkin juice to avoid the owl knocking it over in its overzealous attempt to be noticed.

Hermione paid the owl and unfurled the paper.

_**Death Eaters Move to Muggle Kidnapping**_ was the headline.

_While the Death Eaters appear to be continuing their search for whatever they're looking for, it seems they have added kidnapping to their repertoire. Three Muggle newspapers have reported the disappearances of Maggie Johnson of London, Catharine Hoover of Winchester, and Felix Toban of Coventry over the last three days. _

_Witnesses to the kidnappings say the victims were whisked away by large figures in black wearing metallic masks. The witnesses have since had their memories erased of the images of the Death Eaters, according to the Obliviator Squad._

_No news as to why the Death Eaters chose these three victims or what purpose they have with them. No bodies have yet been discovered. _

"What could possibly possess them to begin kidnapping Muggles?" Hermione asked. "I'd hate to think of what they're planning to do to them." She shuddered.

"As soon as school is out" Harry began "I'm hunting down each and every one of them."

"Hopefully the Auror out there will catch them soon." Hermione said.

"It's not enough that Vol-… You-Know-Who is dead. They still have to cause trouble. And what the hell are they looking for still, all the Horcruxes are gone. And if they're looking for a way to bring him back, that's going to be impossible. There are no spells to bring back the dead, even if there were they'd have to find his body first."

Harry recalled the Minister Shacklebolt taking possession of Voldemort's body and saying he was going to have it buried in an unmarked grave out in the middle of nowhere. As far as Harry knew, only Kingsley knew where the body was. A smart wizard would've buried the body and ordered a trusted friend to obliterate the memory of the location so no one would know where it was. Harry declined the invitation to attend Voldemort's "funeral". He had had enough of Voldemort to last a lifetime.

"What are you thinking, Harry?" Ron asked, noticing the blank look on Harry's face.

"Nothing, really. Just… I don't know. I thought we were done with Death Eaters after he died. I thought they scattered into hiding like they did when this happened." He pointed to the scar on his forehead.

"Maybe they think if he came back once, he'll come back again." Hermione suggested. "Even with evidence of his death this time, maybe they believe there is another form of Dark Magic out there that can resurrect the dead."

"Necromancy" Harry said. "Some muggles believe in that type of magic. But they're getting it all wrong. Even necromancers don't believe they can resurrect someone. The closest a necromancer could get is no different than the Resurrection Stone, an apparition of the person, not even a ghost. The spirit of the person can't do anything but talk."

"Or give orders" Ron said.

"But like the story of The Three Brothers, the spirit wouldn't truly be here and wouldn't be happy here. Not without a body." Harry said.

"He won't last long in an existence like that" Hermione said. "There is no known magic to reunite the soul to the body. Once separated, they cannot be combined again. He's gone. All we have to really worry about are these idiots out there. Hopefully they'll figure it out, sooner rather than later."

"I hope you're right" Harry stated.

Privately Harry wished he could go out tonight and hunt a few of them down. He imagined going out and finding the Death Eaters responsible for these kidnappings and enacting revenge on the ones responsible for the death of his aunt.

He spent the rest of the day trying to finish up his Charms homework which was due the next day and trying hard not to look at the picture in his pocket for the hundredth time today.

That night as he got ready for bed he glanced over at the lock box sitting on his bedside table. He opened it gently glancing at its contents. His aunt and uncle were in this box.

Just before the lid closed completely, the moonlight streaming in through his tower window glinted off the bottle of memories Sirius had left for him. He quickly snatched them up and shoved them into his pocket. He grabbed his invisibility cloak and ran out of the dorm room, through the Common Room, and out the door.

Harry searched the halls of the castle for Professor McGonagall. Now that she was Headmistress, she was harder to find. It seemed she was busier than Dumbledore ever appeared to be. Just as he turned the corner down the corridor that lead to her Headmistress's office when he saw her walking past the gargoyle down the hall in the opposite direction.

"Professor McGonagall" Harry called as he ran to catch up to her whipping his cloak off of him.

"Yes, Mr. Potter? I am in a hurry." She said.

"Er... Well…" Harry started nervously "Professor Dumbledore had a pensieve in the office when it was his and I was wondering if I could use it please?" he said, adding quickly "I mean, if it's still there."

"The pensieve is the property of the headmaster or headmistress of the school and remains in the study for his or her use." She said looking out over the top of her spectacles. "What use could you possibly have of a pensieve now?" She asked.

"Well, you see Professor, Sirius left me this" he held up the vial of Sirius's memories and explained how they had managed to come into his possession. Professor McGonagall listened quietly to Harry's story, her face softened a little as she looked from the milky, swirling liquid in the small bottle then into Harry's eyes.

"Mr. Potter, I understand your desire to learn more about your godfather" she sighed. "As you know it is an extremely busy time right now and my schedule has been stretched thin. Now would not be an opportune time to go diving into the pensieve." She said gently.

Harry's face fell. Professor McGonagall placed her hand gently on his shoulder and said "I'm not telling you 'No, you cannot use the pensieve'; I'm only saying 'not right now'". She sighed, pulled out a small planner, and tapped it with her wand. The flipped open a few pages then she said "I will make the office and pensieve available to you this coming Saturday night at ten o'clock." She pulled out a small strip of parchment from the back, folded it in half, tapped it with her wand, and handed it to Harry. "Show up in front of the gargoyle at the appointed time, give this a tap with your wand and say 'password'", she instructed. "While you are in there, you must behave as is expected. I would prefer you to visit alone, Mr. Potter." She added as she walked away.

Harry stood there a minute before returning to his bed for the night. He had to wait nearly a week before he could see what Sirius had left for him.

"Good evening, Mr. Potter"

The sound of Professor Nigellus's voice made Harry jump under his invisibility cloak.

"Always make sure you have your feet covered if you wish to remain unseen." She said with a smile. "Good night, Mr. Potter."

"Er… Thanks. Good night, Professor" Harry said as he looked down and saw that the toes of his shoes were in fact sticking out from under the front of the cloak. He too smiled as he watched Nigellus enter her office.

This week was proving to be longer than Harry could've imagined. He felt his teachers knew he had made other plans than doing his homework on Saturday night and they added extra homework just to annoy him. That or he wasn't concentrating in class like he should've been and earned himself the extra homework.

On Wednesday a notice had been placed on the board announcing this as a Hogsmeade weekend. Harry was surprised they were allowing students down to the town since the werewolves attacked. In the fine print, he noticed that members of the Magical Law Enforcement Office would be stationed in Hogsmeade to protect the students during their outing.

Harry knew most of Phoenixsong would be staying at the castle since fifth and seventh, and eighth years, would be busy with homework.

"Party! Phoenixsong Common Room! Saturday Night!" Hollered George from across the room.

After the cheers died down Hermione spoke up "Professor Nigellus would never allow a party and you always got in trouble with McGonagall after the Gryffindor parties."

"Well Nigellus isn't McGonagall. I asked and she said yes."

"Oh, sure, you don't really expect me to believe…" she stopped as George dangled a piece of parchment in front of her giving him permission to throw the party, reminding him not everyone was of age, that it was to end at midnight, and it was clearly signed by Nigellus herself.

"But how?" asked Ron.

"Because even without the Quidditch matches, we made the number one spot for the house cup today."

"You're kidding!"

"Don't be a git, of course I am. We're still dead last. Geez, Bro. I dunno why she's letting us. Does it matter?"

"Good thing it's a Hogsmeade weekend. We can get all the supplies without sneaking through one of the old passages." Harry said. "They're all still blocked."

"Not for long. Overheard McGonagall talking to Kingsley about student safety. If something happens inside the castle, we currently only have two exits, the Entrance Hall and the Courtyard. Gotta have more than that with the number of students." George winked, Harry chuckled. Between the two of them, they knew all the passages in and out of the castle.

Friday's Daily Prophet brought Harry the some of the worst news he could've heard.

_**Muggle Kidnappings Continue. Robberies Stop.**_

_The Death Eaters have apparently ceased their robberies, possibly giving up their search for whatever they were looking for._

_Unfortunately the muggle newspapers have shown more kidnappings. Since our last report two more muggles have been spotted abducted by figures in black clothes and metallic type "scary masks" as one witness described. Jonathan Sparks from Dover and Arabella Figg from Little Whinging are the most recent victims of the Death Eaters suspected kidnappings. No bodies have yet been found in any of the disappearances. _

Harry's heart broke. Mrs. Figg was his babysitter growing up, a neighbor to him, and she even helped him escape Dementors by helping to get his cousin Dudley Dursley home after they were attacked by the creatures.

"Mrs. Figg." Harry said. "She's not a muggle. She's a …" he lowered his voice so only Ron and Hermione could hear "squib."


	22. The Memories, The Beginning

Harry didn't feel much like partying in the Phoenixsong Common Room or going to Hogsmeade so instead he packed up his book bag and went to the library to catch up on some homework.

When he got caught up he spent some time wandering the many shelves of books. Occasionally he picked out a title that looked interesting only to put it right back after flipping through the pages.

His mind was wandering from the kidnappings to the memories he had in his pocket and back again. Why was Mrs. Figg on the list of muggles taken? What could Death Eaters want with a squib? They had no magic; they were no different than muggles. _Squibs are just opposite of muggle-borns_, Harry thought to himself.

Three hours left until he can go up to the Headmistresses office to see what memories Sirius had left for him about his Aunt Jessie. He already knew she was pretty from the photos. Was she nice? Was she quiet or was she a Marauder at heart? Would he even see those kinds of things in the memories?

"Are you looking for something in particular, Mr. Potter?" Madam Pince had come up behind him.

"I'm not sure." He said, his mouth working faster than his brain yet again. "Do you know if the magical world keeps track of… er… squibs?" He asked.

"I do not believe they do."

"Do you have any books on squibs?"

"No, we do not. They were removed when Mr. Filch joined the staff to prevent students from researching him and to limit them poking fun at him." She said sharply. "Now if you do not have work to do I would appreciate it if you left the library as to not disturb those who do have things to do."

Thinking quickly Harry asked "Are there any books on the history of Alchemy?"

She looked at him questioningly for a second before showing him the small section containing five books. He picked out the one titled simply _History of Alchemy_ and took it back to the desk he where his stuff was and pretended to read.

The clock ticked away slowly until Madam Pince came around quietly to each student announcing curfew would be in a few minutes. Harry glanced at his watch. Eight-Fifty. One hour, ten minutes until he could go upstairs to McGonagall's office. He shuffled his feet, returning the books to the shelves as slowly as he could. At nine o'clock he walked out of the library with nowhere to go except back up to the Common Room.

He continued to drag his feet, trying to waste as much time as possible on the way to Phoenixsong Tower and when he finally arrived found the door was propped open. The phoenix in the painting on the door was complaining loudly about the noise and the indignity of being left open. He carried his book bag up to his dorm room after avoiding what seemed like hundreds of invites for drinks, sweets, party hats and favors, and a few questionable items with W.W.W. inconspicuously printed on them.

He sat back on his bed and sighed. He still had thirty minutes until his appointment. He had his cloak ready

At exactly ten o'clock Harry stood in front of the Gargoyle guarding the entryway to Professor McGonagall's office. He pulled out the piece of paper she gave him nearly a week ago, tapped it with his wand, and uttered the word "password."

The paper unfolded itself revealing the words she had written. Harry read aloud "Secrets cut as deep as a sword."

The gargoyle jumped aside to let Harry past and up the spinning spiral staircase. His hands were shaking with excitement when he knocked on the door.

"Enter" he heard McGonagall say from the other side of the door. Harry opened the door and entered.

Most of Professor Dumbledore's spinning and puffing silver instruments were gone; a few lingered on nearly empty tables covered with long tablecloths of varying colors. The bookcases were still packed with thousands of tomes. Gryffindor's sword hung underneath Professor Dumbledore's portrait behind the desk. McGonagall had added her own touches with tartan plaid furniture. The walls were painted a deep hunter green. Her tin of cookies sat on the desk, as did a foot high pile of parchment in a box marked "To Do".

"Good Evening, Professor" Harry said.

"Good Evening, Mr. Potter. I have placed the Pensieve over there on a table for you." She said as she got up to leave.

"Professor, if you're busy… you could stay and work or… well… I could come back later." He offered eyeing the large stack on her desk.

"If you're certain we will not disturb each other, I do have a lot of owls to answer." She said with her eyes too on the stack before taking her seat again and picking up the top most sheet of parchment and sighing.

Harry turned to the stone pensieve sitting on the small table. He too sighed as he slowly poured Sirius's memories into the basin. He watched as they swirled around, finally settling on what looked like a floor covered with deep red and blue oriental-type carpet.

He leaned his head over the edge of the bowl and let the tip of his nose just kiss the liquid. He felt his feet leave the stone floor of McGonagall's office as he fell head first into the room below.

Harry found himself standing next to two boys playing wizard chess in a small but classic looking living room, in front of a roaring fireplace. Harry recognized them as a young Sirius and James, probably around their first year.

"I wouldn't move that piece if I were you, James" said a voice from the connected dining room. Harry turned to see an elderly wizard enter the room. He had shoulder length silver hair, deep brown eyes, and Harry's smile. "That'll put you in check in two moves." He said as he walked over to a stuffed chair and slowly sat down with a steaming cup of tea.

"Thanks Dad" The younger James said and moved another piece.

Harry walked over to examine his grandfather more closely. He also shared a nose with this man. He longed to shout "I'm here Granddad!" but he knew his grandfather would never hear him.

A clock on the wall chimed three and his grandfather said "Your sister will be here any minute, James. You explained her situation to Mr. Black here?"

"Yes, Sir" both boys answered quickly and James added "I don't see why it's such a big deal. Jessie's as normal as anyone else."

Granddad, as Harry now felt compelled to call him, smiled over his cup of tea.

The front door opened and a plain looking girl walked in. Garry could see she had the same black hair he and his father had though she could obviously style hers with ease. Her eyes sparkled brightly as she smiled at James, Sirius, and her father. She sat her backpack down and picked up the black cat that had been intertwining around her legs. "Hello Mr. Pickles."

"Of course she says 'Hi' to the cat first" James muttered but Sirius didn't answer. When Harry turned to look at them he saw his future Godfather appeared to be dumbstruck.

The memory faded and Harry reappeared on the grounds of Hogwarts by the birch tree by the lake. There was a commotion of mixed laughter and screams coming from the edge of the lake. Harry saw his mother running up the grass towards the castle yelling "James! James! Hurry! She's down there!" He turned to see James, Sirius, and Remus running towards her. She looked to be about fourteen in the memory, her fierce green eyes wide.

"What happened? Where is she?" James sounded panicked. But the look on Sirius's face spoke volumes to Harry. If James was scared, Sirius was terrified.

Lily lead them to the edge of the lake where two kids were huddled, shivering and soaking wet, as if they'd just went for a swim in the lake with their clothes on.

James and Sirius whipped out their wands, pointing them at the boy sitting in the grass shivering. "Explain, now!" James demanded.

The boy looked up and Harry saw the exhausted face of Severus Snape, though much younger. "Someone pushed me in." he choked out.

"Likely story! What did you do to my sister?" James snapped.

What little color was left in Snape's face drained out. "Nothing! I swear!" He sputtered.

James took final aim with his wand, opened his mouth but before he could utter a single syllable, Jessie jumped up in James's face.

"D-Don't y-you d-dare b-blame h-him f-for an-anyth-thing James Potter!" she stuttered as she shivered. "F-For your information, that boy over there pushed Severus in the lake!" She pointed at an older Slytherin boy. "When he didn't come up, I went in after him and pulled him out!" Her face had begun to turn red with anger and Harry could've sworn he saw fire in her eyes.

By the looks of it, James saw it too. Lily was helping Severus up off the ground and into the castle as James and Jessie stared each other down. Sirius walked around and wrapped Jessie in his own cloak and began leading her into the castle. James took off ahead to get the door with Harry at his side. When Harry turned to look at his aunt he saw gratitude in her eyes as he looked up into Sirius's relieved face.

As Hogwarts began fading around him, the memory swirling to form a new scene, Harry felt a gentle hand on his shoulder. He felt his feet leave the steps of the castle and land on the carpeted floor of McGonagall's office.

"I'm sorry, dear." McGonagall said softly, wringing her hands together in front of her. "I waited until the memory ended. We have an emergency."

Harry looked around and saw most of the staff standing in the room. A few look worried, like McGonagall. Madam Pince was wiping a tear from her eye with a lace handkerchief, and Professor Nigellus looked terrified.

"Is there anything I can help with?" Harry asked.

"I'm afraid not tonight, Harry." McGonagall said softly. "All houses are under lockdown until morning and no student is permitted outside the castle after dark."

"What happened?" He asked, pulling Sirius's memories from the pensieve.

"Mr. Filch was on an errand for the school in Hogsmeade tonight when Death Eaters appeared. One of them grabbed him and apparated away with him. Please hurry off to your house."

Harry walked as quickly as he could down to the entrance of the South Tower. "Blueberry Muffin" Harry said to the Phoenix guarding the door.

"Hmph. Stupid password if you ask me." The bird said as the portrait swung to reveal the door.

The Common Room was packed with students, all with worried faces over the current events. Death Eaters in Hogsmeade, another kidnapping right under their noses.

Harry said down with Ron, Hermione, and Ginny and began telling them what he was told. The same thing they were told turns out.

"Tomorrow we need to figure out what the Death Eaters want with Squibs." He said, the others agreed.


	23. Questions Unanswered

The next day the Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny headed to the library. Even though Harry had already told them all books on squibs had been removed, Hermione argued that they still might find something useful. "Just because the book isn't about squibs doesn't mean it might not contain information about them." She told him.

"I think we need to take into account what the Death Eaters might be trying to do while we search." Ginny suggested.

"Well, what exactly is that?" Harry asked. "They've gone from terrorizing muggles, to searching for something, to kidnapping. They don't exactly sound related."

"They may not be, but we also know they're trying to bring You-Know-Who back to life." Ginny said.

"But Professor Nigellus said squibs are nothing more than muggles. What would they need with magic-born muggles?" Ron asked.

They all thought about it as they walked.

On the door to the library was posted a notice:

_Due to the school lock down, curfew has been extended by 1 hour for 1-6 years and 2 hours for 7-8 years. The library will extend hours to accommodate the adjustment to the schedule. A new shipment of fiction and other entertainment type books in all age ranges will arrive on the 30__th__ of November._

_Studying and homework is still preferred while students are in the library. _

_Madam Pince, Librarian_

"Well that's nice to know." Ron said as he opened the door to let the others in ahead of him but as he did Professor Nigellus was on the other side looking startled but smiling.

"Oh! So sorry Mr. Weasley, you scared me." She said brightly. "Good to see you kids studying on a Sunday. Miss. Weasley, Miss. Granger, Har… Mr. Potter." Smiling as she greeted each of them. "Madam Pince, I shall see you first thing in the morning and let you know how it goes. Good day, all of you." She said still smiling and for the first time since Harry met her, she had a sparkle in her eyes.

"We get lock-down and she's all cheery as if she won some lottery." Ron said watching their professor walk down the hall towards her office.

They chose a table to place their belongings and split up into different section to search for books that might give them a clue as to why the Death Eaters had kidnapped at least two known squibs.

After an hour the table was covered with books, each offering a glimmer of hope to finding what they were looking for but ultimately disappointed. The only place they didn't or couldn't look was the restricted section. Without permission from a teacher and without good reason, no student was permitted in there.

"Wait!" Hermione muffled her cry of triumph. "This one says research on squibs was conducted by the Ministry of Magic back in 1745 to test their limitations. The research was published in a book called _Squibs: Magic or Muggle; A Definitive Answer to the Age Old Question of What Are Squibs._"

"Probably just tells us what we already know. Squibs are non-magic users, muggles." Ron said.

"Maybe, but we should see if we can get a copy somewhere. I'll send an owl to the bookstores in Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley, see if either has it." Hermione said.

"It's a place to start." Ginny stated, flipping through a copy of _Hidden Magic_.

"I think I've got something too." Harry said. "It says here that back in the 1600's reports were made of the dead being brought back…" he let out a sigh. "But no one knows how they returned. The muggles who reported it attributed it to mistakes made by undertakers and the magical community called it misuse of polyjuice potion. One was definitely found to be a prank, another was a inferi. Nothing more, sorry." He added.

"Well, except for getting our hands on that book, we're back to square one." Ron said. "Do you think Professor Nigellus would let us in the Restricted Section?" he asked.

"Even if she did, what good is the Restricted Section to Muggle Studies?" Hermione asked. "Maybe Professor Haymaker would be a better choice."

"That old git?" Ron looked incredulous. "He would sooner give us permission to perform the Cruciatus Curse on him before he'd sign a note like that."

"Well, I think he just might." She said indignantly. "I can't think of any other Professors that won't ask a thousand questions about why anyone would want in there."

"Hermione's right." Harry told them. "And I think she should be the one to ask, no offense, Hermione. He added. "You're the one who could better find what we're looking for, if one of us got it there, it would be better if it were you."

Ginny agreed. "I know I couldn't begin to guess where to look in there, I've only been in there once and still had trouble navigating Madam Pince's system."

"Then it's settled. I'll go ask him after lunch."

During lunch Hermione wrote out the letters to the bookstores requesting information on the books on Squibs. She gave them to Ginny to send out after lunch while she went to see Professor Haymaker, the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher about the pass to the Restricted Section of the library.

Harry decided that after lunch he would be going to see Professor McGonagall again. He needed to finish viewing Sirius's memories. He felt a little bad about not fully concentrating on the squib kidnappings like everyone else, but he also felt there was something important in the memories Sirius wanted him to know.

But before they left the Great Hall there were loud crashing noises coming from the Entrance Hall, yelling and screaming carried in through the open doors. Students were standing on the benches and tables to get a better look.

"You take that back, Millicent!" Gwen was yelling, her wand held out pointed at the cowering girl. "No one takes the name of Dumbledore in vain around me!"

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Millicent was crying, trying to defend herself with her arms, her wand sparking feebly in her hand.

"Levicorpus!" Gwen yelled and Millicent went tumbling into the air, hanging helplessly upside-down screaming. Gwen began a loud, barking laugh. "If I ever hear you say anything against Professor Dumbledore or Professor McGonagall again, this will be the least of your worries!"

"Liberacorpus!" Professor McGonagall's voice carried over the shouts, cheers, and cries of the crowd watching Gwen and Millicent. "Gweneviere Nigellus, to my office, now! This is no way for a Hogwarts student to behave. The daughter of a Professor should know to set a positive example in this school and not take petty problems into her own hands. Acting against a member of your own house!" McGonagall sighed. "Millicent, to the Hospital Wing to get cleaned up immediately and after Madam Pomfrey releases you I want to see you in my office."

Harry had never seen Professor McGonagall look so mad at one student, ever. She looked furious as she grabbed Gwen by the shoulder and led her down the hallway. A few Slytherin sixth years helped Millicent make her way to the Hospital Wing. The Great Hall gradually calmed down but the conversations continued louder than before.

"Gwen was defending Dumbledore? She didn't even know him." Ron stated. "What would it matter to her and what got her so fired up to begin with?" he asked.

"She's been here long enough to learn plenty about him. He was the greatest Headmaster in history, that's not something anyone is going to forget." Ginny said.

"Plus our house was virtually named after him and is comprised mostly of members from Dumbledore's Army." Neville interrupted. "Personally, if Millicent had said something horrible about Dumbledore in front of me, I might've done something similar." He admitted, and then blushed somewhat ashamed.

"Differences of opinion like that aren't reasons to act out against someone in your own house." Hermione added. "It's against Phoenixsong rules. Oh… Professor Nigellus is going to flip when she finds out."

Harry tuned out their gossip, he wasn't in the mood for it. With Gwen's antics, he watched his hopes of looking into the pensieve any time soon walk away as McGonagall dragged her off up to her office. She would be busy this afternoon dishing out punishment to Gwen and Millicent. She probably wouldn't even be in the mood to entertain his request to schedule a time when he could use the pensieve again. He gave an audible sigh.

"Don't worry, Harry. We'll figure out what's going on. Hopefully in a few days I'll have a copy of that book and hopefully it'll contain the answers we need." Hermione said at the sound.

"I know." He said, wondering when they got back on the topic of the squibs. "Ron, you want to go back to the library with me? There are Dark Arts books not in the Restricted Section we didn't look at, maybe there's something in one of those."

"You're joking, right?" Ron asked. "I can think of a hundred things I'd rather do than go back in there."

"It's either that or work on our Transfiguration homework." Harry smirked.

"Fine, library it is." Ron sighed as they all got up to leave to go their separate ways.

Within a half hour Ginny was sitting at the library table helping Ron and Harry scan through the Dark Arts books piled there. There weren't many since Hogwarts was more about defense than offense but they were still hopeful of a hint.

They had almost completed their pile when Hermione came in, puffed up and in bad mood.

"You didn't get it." Ginny said, looking at Hermione's state.

"No, I got it." She said pulling out the permission slip. "It just that… he… well… he thinks I need the extra help." She huffed.

Ron chuckled then quickly straightened himself. "He's a git, you're the brightest witch in our year."

"Then why did you laugh?" Hermione asked indignantly, looking severely cross at Ron.

He chuckled again. "I can't help it" he said then tried hopelessly to whisper so no one else would hear "You're cute when your cross."

"Hmph" Hermione got up and took the note to Madam Pince who let her into the Restricted Section with barely a second thought.

The others pretended not to watch as Hermione scoured the books looking for hopeful titles. Special tables were set up in the Restricted Section so students didn't need to remove the books from the area. They watched as she sat down with three books with a forlorn expression on her face, she shook her head to indicate what little hope she had.

After a few hours she placed the books back on the shelves and returned to the table with the others.

"Nothing yet. I have a feeling I'm not looking in the right books though. Good thing Professor Haymaker left the pass open indefinitely. He said in order to properly defend against the dark arts; I need to understand them more thoroughly. Ugh." She shuddered. "I hate those books. Let's go down to dinner, we can try again tomorrow." She suggested.

The all groaned at the thought of trying again. They were beginning to think that whatever book they needed was not located in the school's library.


	24. News is Rarely Good

The morning's mail brought Hermione's copy of the Daily Prophet and a note from Libris and Solum's bookshop in Hogsmeade.

The note read simply:

_Miss Granger,_

_We have never heard of a book by that title and our research says it does not exist for purchase. _

_Miss Vassie Solum_

"Well, we'll see what Flourish and Blotts has to say about it. Maybe they'll answer tomorrow." Hermione said hopefully opening up the newspaper. "Oh no."

"More kidnappings?" Harry asked, afraid of the answer.

"Worse." Hermione read the short article out loud.

_Kidnapped Muggle Body Found_

_The body of Felix Toban of Coventry was discovered yesterday in a muggle drainage system on the outskirts of London. The muggle Coroner said no foul play could ascertained from the condition of the body. The Coroner from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement says the only explanation is that the Killing Curse was used on Mr. Toban. _

_The discovery of Mr. Toban is the first lead the Department has in its search for the missing muggle by Death Eaters. No other kidnappings have been attempted as far as the Department can tell. No other information is available at this time. We will do our best to keep our readers informed. _

"We've got to get to the bottom of this, soon!" Harry said outraged and worried if Mrs. Figg would soon meet the same fate as Mr. Toban. The Death Eaters wanted squibs for something. They'd kept Mr. Toban alive for a few months before killing him. But for what purpose, he wondered. What had the squib failed to do or provide?

"Well I was planning on going to the library after breakfast. I had another idea on where to look. Last night I stuck to Dark Arts involving squibs but didn't find anything. I was thinking maybe I needed to check books on death and resurrection theories. I mean, the Death Eaters ultimate goal is to bring back their leader." Hermione rattled on determinedly.

"I'll go with you" Harry said. "I can't sit around."

They finished their breakfast and hurried off to the library. Harry wandered the aisles looking for interesting topics while Hermione searched the Restricted Section again in hopes of finding some clue.

After a few hours Hermione had another healthy pile of books on her desk in the Restricted Section. Harry finally touched on a promising title _Possibility of Reversing the Actual and Metaphysical Effects of Natural Death, With Particular Regard to the Reintegration of Essence and Matter._ by Bertrand de Pensées-Profondes.

At first the book appeared to be some of the same thing those fake psychics on Aunt Petunia's talk shows used to tout: Life after death and how to contact the deceased. He also noticed a chapter on what muggles call Brain Death, the moment in which the brain stops functioning after the heart has stopped effectively giving a very small window of opportunity to restimulate life into the body. It included instructions on how to perform Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation, when it was most useful and when it would be hopeless. In the Killing Curse, Brain Death was instantaneous and CPR was of no use.

He was just about to put it away when he noticed a chapter on _The Theory of Reuniting the Soul to the Body. _He immediately thought that this was exactly what the Death Eaters would be looking for, if they knew where Lord Voldemort's body was buried. Not even Harry knew that. The location was privileged information for less than a handful of trusted Ministry personnel, all past members of the Order of the Phoenix. Harry only knew that Minster Kingsley Shacklebolt presided over the burial himself. The article in the Daily Prophet simply read: _The body of Lord Voldemort was buried today. May the world rejoice._

Harry read through a few summaries of failed attempts at resurrection and bringing the dead back to life, however when he reached the last sentence of the chapter, he read "Give it up. It's never going to happen." He didn't know whether to laugh or throw the book out the window.

Hermione faired only slightly better but they were mere rumors of resurrections, much like those Harry had found the previous night. She found spells and potions that had been tried and all failed. The only clue she had to go on that looked promising was a reference to what one author dubbed World Walkers and described them as people who could pass through the veil between the worlds.

"Essentially isn't that what squibs are?" Ron asked at lunch. "They walk between the wizard and muggle worlds."

"Yes, but that means people like my parents are World Walkers too" Hermione said. "They were brought into the wizarding world when I got my letter. Any muggle introduced to the wizarding world can now walk between them." She explained.

"Right" Harry said. "So we're back where we started." He began picking at his food. He felt helpless again but he also felt the answer was right under his nose but he couldn't see it clearly.

"Well… we still have the letter out to Flourish and Blotts" Hermione added. "I'm sure the answers are in there. Maybe the Death Eaters have a copy of it."

"Somehow I doubt they have it." Harry sighed. "If by some chance they do, let me know. I'll buy it." He added as he got up from the lunch table and headed toward his dorm room.

"Password, Mr. Potter?" The Phoenix in the portrait asked. The young girl next to it smiled softly, blushing a bit when Harry waved to her.

"Snickerdoodle" Harry replied, tickling the bird under the chin.

"Stupid password, if you ask me." The phoenix stated as the portrait began to swing open. "Should be something more powerful, more meaningful, or at least more difficult to remember. Anyone would walk right in with a password that stupid." The bird rambled as the portrait swung open.

Harry threw himself onto his bed and stared up at the canopy of burnt orange. His mind was racing with questions and possibilities, each stranger and more unlikely than the last. He hated not being able to go out to help and part of him regretted coming back to Hogwarts instead of joining the Aurors. If he were with the Aurors right now, he'd be on the trail of the Death Eaters, not sitting around wondering hopelessly.

He sat up and stared out the window watching the cold air of mid-November roll in. All the leaves had nearly fallen from the trees. He briefly wondered when snow would start to fall when his eyes fell back to Sirius's lock box on the bed.

He pulled the box onto his lap and began going through the contents again. For some unknown reason these small trinkets brought him comfort. Even though she was gone, in his heart he knew his Aunt Jessie had loved him just like his parents and Sirius had. Even though she was gone, when he ran his fingers over her old wand, he thought he could feel her presence. The wand seemed to vibrate with contentment. Feeling he needed some cheering up, he placed her wand in his pocket with the picture of her, Sirius, and his parents.

As he was putting the items away his hand closed on the cold glass vial of Sirius's memories. He watched the contents swirl inside. He still didn't know everything they contained. All he really knew was that she was brave enough to jump in the freezing lake to save Severus Snape from drowning and also strong enough to stand up to her brother when it mattered, he also knew Sirius was crazy about her.

He clenched the bottle tightly in his hand and walked out of the dorm determined to see the remainder of the memories. If he couldn't help the squibs, the least he could do was learn more about his aunt and Sirius. He even wondered if he's parents were in more of them.

He was just exiting the portrait hole when Professor Nigellus came down the hallway towards her office looking nervous. She quickly ducked through her office door without a word.

Harry had pushed his Head of House's behavior out of his mind by the time he reached the corridor he needed. Outside of the Headmistress's doorway, Harry gave the guardian gargoyle statue the last password he knew. The gargoyle jumped aside and allowed him up the spiral staircase to the office door.

He knocked softly on the door.

"Enter" Professor McGonagall's voice came from the other side of the door. He pushed it open.

"Oh. Mr. Potter. How may help you tonight?" she asked, smiling. Harry hoped that was a good sign.

"Sorry to bother you Professor, but I was wondering if I could finish Sirius's memories." Harry said as he showed her the vial in his hand.

"I'm sorry Mr. Potter but tonight wouldn't be good. We've just finished another staff meeting and Minister Shacklebolt is on his way now and must meet with others tomorrow evening. I'm not sure when I can accommodate you to view them. I know they are important to you." She answered, softly.

"Minerva, dear" Professor Dumbledore's portrait spoke up, looking awake for the first time since Harry entered. "You never know what secrets the past can provide to those in the present. Might I suggest you move the pensieve to a secure room tonight for Harry to use tomorrow after lessons?" Dumbledore asked.

McGonagall gave a soft sigh as she looked between Harry and Dumbledore's portrait. "I suppose I can do that. Downstairs just to the left of this doorway is a small meeting room. The password is 'limerick' and I will have the pensieve in tomorrow after dinner."

"Thank you Professors." Harry said with a slight smile and returned to the Phoenixsong Common Room.


	25. Ministry of Magic

Unbeknownst to anyone else in the castle, Professor Nigellus had her own plans for the evening. She had just left a staff meeting in which all she could concentrate on were the portraits on the wall. The past Headmasters and Headmistresses of Hogwarts stared down interested in the developments before them. No doubt they would all be equally interested in McGonagall's later meeting with Minister Shacklebolt. One of the missing muggles had been discovered and there were still questions as to whether he was a squib or simply a case of mistaken identity of a poor muggle by the Death Eaters. The other teachers were still concerned about the security and safety of the students, as it should be.

Occasionally a few of the portraits would pipe in, sometimes unwelcomed, to give advice or ask questions but the meeting only proved that the current status was stable and the staff was doing everything right.

Jessica Nigellus hadn't had the pleasure of using Floo Powder in a very long time but she never forgot how. She stood nervously in front of the fireplace in her office holding a small vial of the green powder she'd nicked from the Headmistress's office just an hour before. She felt bad for stealing it, but her heart was guiding her tonight, not her head. She unstoppered the tiny glass container and spilled a pinch into her other hand. She took a deep, steadying breath trying to gather the remainder of her courage to fulfill her goal. She threw the pinch of powder into the flames, stepped into the fireplace and shouted "Ministry of Magic!"

The magical green fire surrounded her, fireplaces began to swim in front of her eyes but she tried to remain calm, to keep her mind on what she needed to accomplish this night. The swirling began to slow until a single fireplace stood in front of her. She stepped out and into the marble lobby of the Ministry of Magic. It was deserted this late at night. Her footsteps echoed on the stone floor as she made her way to the set of lifts off to her right. The security guard desk was empty. _They're probably off making rounds_, she thought to herself; she hoped.

She pressed the lift's call button and the golden gated doors opened in front of her. She stood nervously for a second before stepping into the lift and asking "Department of Mysteries, Please", her politeness helping to ease her nerves. The lift door closed and began its rattling decent down, deeper into the Ministry building. "Level 9, Department of Mysteries" said a disembodied woman's voice as the lift gates opened, "Have a nice day." It said as she stepped out of the lift and walked towards the door at the end of the hall. The lift began to rattle back up behind her.

The door in front of her was simply black, no handle, no means of opening it that she could see. But she knew the secret to gaining entrance to this door. She gave a nervous laugh, who in their right mind would believe a _squib_ would know the secret to entering the rooms beyond this door? Only the people who lived when her father used to work down here would know she had the potential. Her father had introduced her and her bother to this area of the Ministry before they began school to show them there was more to magic than the everyday tricks performed around the house. Her father was an Unspeakable and for the last ten years of his life he was Head of the Department.

She stepped up to the door and in the ancient Latin language she said "Open". The black door swung inward into a large circular room and when she stepped inside the door swung closed. For a second she was surrounded in darkness before the blue flame candles began to ignite one by one around the room revealing many doors around her. She closed her eyes because she remembered what came next, the nauseating spinning of the room that would attempt to confuse those who didn't know what to do. She stood still. When the lights behind her eyelids steadied, she opened them. If she had to guess, she would never know which door she needed to enter or even which door she needed in order to leave. But she wasn't ready to leave, she had a mission. She opened her mouth to ask for the room she needed but her heart beat her to it. She asked for "The Death Chamber" and one of the doors off to her far right opened.

She hesitated in the doorway, unsure as to why she had asked to come here but ultimately, she stepped through. The door closed behind her as she made her way down the stairs towards the raised stone dais in the center of the room. On the dais stood an ancient crumbling stone archway where a thin, torn curtain fluttered as if by a slight breeze. Her father had told her about the room, even opened the door for her to look in but never let her descend the steps. Tonight she walked with determination up to the archway. She could hear voices coming from within. She touched the ancient stone with one word on her mind: Sirius.

Her husband Sirius had died here. He had fallen through this very archway, through the black veil fluttering in front of her. The whispers coming from within were mixed, muffled, and mingled. If Sirius were talking to her or someone else within, she would never know.

Unsure of how long she had been standing there she realized it was time to go, she had work to do elsewhere in the department and standing here longing for something she could never get back was only torture. She turned with one last look at her lover's final resting place and walked back up the stairs with tears slowly falling down her face.

She reentered the main room of the Department, the door closed behind her and the room with the blue flames spun again. She gathered her wits and asked for the room "Time". A door off to her right opened emitting a dazzling, sparkling light. She stepped through with determination, walked past many of the various clocks, whizzing gadgets and gizmos standing around on shelves, desks, and tables. She made her way to a large glass fronted cabinet but to her dismay, it stood empty. There were no time-turners in the cabinet that she remembered once stood full of them.

She sat down at a nearby chair to think. With the time-turners gone, her plan would fail here. She needed to remember the words of her father as he explained the many intricacies of the objects that surrounded her. She walked over the desk that once, long ago belonged to her father and placed her face in her hands and began to cry. Her plan had ended before it began and she realized she had made a mistake in visiting the Death Chamber. Her heart was breaking all over again.

She got up to leave, her hopes shattered. But as she walked past the last desk on the way out she saw it. A smaller glass tabletop sized display case containing three time-turners. She gently opened the case and pulled one of the silver hourglass necklaces out, kissed it, and placed it around her neck, hiding it down her shirt. She hurried off the way she came, back out to the circular room and out to the Department atrium.

Her luck was running out as Minister Shacklebolt stepped out of one of the lifts. "When we heard someone had used Floo Powder to enter the Ministry after hours, we were worried Death Eaters were trying to infiltrate again. When I found out it was you, I came myself. Jessica, is there anything I can help you with?"

"I'm sorry Kingsley" she said "I…." but she couldn't finish. She couldn't lie to one of her friends from so long ago.

"I think I understand why you are here" He said softly placing his arm around her. He was like a big brother to her, like so many of the members of the Order had been. They had taken her in and accepted her because of James and Sirius. "You came down to see where Sirius was lost to us." He said gently. "You have not been down here but I had hoped you would have come to me first."

Again the only thing she could say was "I'm sorry." The tear stains on her face and clothes must have lead Kingsley to this conclusion and in part, he was right. "I needed to say good-bye" she said, not really lying because she had been in the room.

"Do you need help getting down there? I would be honored to escort you." He said.

"No. Thank you, though." She gave him a hug around the waist and explained about her father.

"Well then… If you are ready, allow me to walk with you back to the fireplaces. I have arranged permission for you to return to Hogwarts the way you came."

"Thank you for understanding" she told him as they stepped into the lift back to the Atrium.

"I was here with him when it happened. He fought bravely, strongly, and honorably." Kingsley told her. "He was just standing in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Jessie nodded quietly. She knew he was just trying to help her and she appreciated the effort. They stepped up to the fireplace that would take her back to the school; she hugged him again and thanked him again for his understanding, apologized again for causing trouble. She stepped through the fire and back into her room at Hogwarts and began to cry again. It was getting too late. The ghosts would be patrolling the hallways now and she had no excuse available for why she needed into the part of the castle she needed next. She had wasted too much time in the Death Chamber. She had wasted too much time feeling sorry for herself before finding the remaining time-turners. The remainder of her plan would have to wait until the following evening when she could attempt it unseen.


	26. Memories Revealed Part One  The Wand

The next morning, Harry found he could barely concentrate in class again. He knew he was going to earn himself extra homework but at the moment he didn't care.

Tonight he would find himself in a locked room alone with the pensieve and Sirius's memories. Right now he didn't care what class he was in, all he could think of were the swirling memories in the glass vial in his pocket.

He knew he missed Sirius these past three years but since finding the box under the bed he realized he missed him more than ever now. This last small collection of memories was Harry's last chance to learn anything about him.

The day seemed to drag on and dinner hadn't come soon enough. When he was finished he ran back up the stairs to the Headmistress's corridor and said the password at the doorway. The door creaked open to reveal a long table with rows of chairs along each side. Harry took it to be a formal meeting room of some kind. At the head of the table was sitting the pensieve.

Standing in front of the pensieve, he hesitated for a very brief moment before pouring the memories in. He watched as they swirled into the water like substance. He bent his face down into the water and felt his feet leave the stone floor of the meeting room and land on the soft carpet of his grandparent's home. The memories had restarted where they began.

He watched the scene in which Sirius first met his Aunt Jessie play through again. He watched again as Jessie stood yelling at James after she pulled Snape from the icy water of the lake. When that memory faded he knew he was in new territory as a new memory came swirling into existence.

Hogwarts grounds had disappeared ad Harry found himself standing outside a familiar shop in Diagon Alley with the Marauders and Jessie. They appeared to be not much older than the previous memory.

"It doesn't hurt to ask, James" Remus said. "From what I've heard it's possible for squibs to use pre-loaded wand with limited spells. Anything's better than the Quikspell Rip-off School."

"Oh. So she wouldn't need to do the dishes by hand or use her fingers to turn the page of her book?" James asked in a sing-song sarcastic voice.

"I'm not sure the uses or limitations, we can ask. Ultimately, I believe it is up to Jessie." Remus replied.

"Jessie's magical in her own ways." James said looking at his sister who immediately turned on her heels and entered Ollivander's shop.

"Uh! I hate it when she gets like this." James complained as he followed her in. "Thanks, Moony!"

Wormtail elbowed Sirius and whispered "Personally I think it makes her look scorching" he winked and chuckled.

"Even if you were a muggle, she'd still be out of your league Wormy." Sirius sighed and went inside with the rest.

"How may I help you?" A much younger Mr. Ollivander asked the group in general. "One of you break your wand already?" He eyed them suspiciously until they landed on Jessie. "Or do we have a late bloomer in need of her first wand?" He asked her specifically.

"It seems my friend here believes there are so called pre-filled wands that non-magic users can buy to pretend to be wizards with." James said with a chuckle.

Ollivander eyed Jessie more carefully this time and took her hand over the counter. "She's a squib then, is she?" he asked. "No, I'm afraid those wands are just jokes meant to rip off hopeful muggles into thinking it's the wand that wields the power. I'm sorry, my dear, but there is little help I can give you here." He said still holding her hand and watching her closely. Harry watched as she tried to hide her disappointment from James as Moony and Wormtail left the shop.

"Thank you, Mr. Ollivander." Jessie whispered.

James had just opened the door to leave when Mr. Ollivander spoke again. "There is however an ancient legend of squibs being able to use wands too, long before my time, though." He sniggered. "Only a master wandmaker would be able to even tell you the details, that is, if he even knows them."

"That's ok, Mr. Ollivander." Jessie said as she pulled her arm away. "Thank you again, Sir. Sorry to take up your time." She turned away to leave.

Harry looked around. James was holding the door open for Jessie. Sirius was waiting by the counter apparently in deep thought looking up into Jessie's eyes but not quite seeing her.

"Excuse me, Mr. Ollivander. Aren't you a master wandmaker and an expert in wand lore?" Sirius asked finally meeting the man's eyes.

"Not quite, but soon, I'm afraid." He said. "My father is still the master at this shop. He spends most of his time making one wand every few days and resting the rest of the time. He is quite old now and very tired."

"Don't go digging my grave just yet, Junior!" came a frail, quiet voice from down the hall made up of shelves packed with wands in boxes. Harry thought he had only ever saw one witch as old as this man appeared to be and that was the Head of the Wizarding Examination Authority, Griselda Marchbanks, he had met during his OWL tests in his fifth year. "Now, what seems to be the problem?" He asked as he approached the counter. Jessie had returned to the counter, James sighed as he shut the shops door.

The younger Ollivander addressed his father "This here is a squib curious about the potential to use magic herself. And these young men are here with her."

"I see much potential in this group." The Senior said looking over them and out to the waiting Moony and Wormtail. "Yes, my child" he said to Jessie. "It is possible; however it is also difficult, dangerous, and ancient magic. It must not be entered into lightly."

"We're not talking Dark Magic, are we?" asked James wearily.

"No, no, my boy! Far more powerful and far more ancient. Legend has it it was passed from the fae to the humans who lived nearby long, long ago."

Before James could scoff at the idea of fae, Sirius interrupted. "How does it work?" he asked. Jessie appeared anxious and James downright annoyed.

"Ah, yes. As to how, I'm not sure. I've only performed it once in my lifetime and later learned it only lasted a short year."

"What happened to the squib?" Sirius asked, chancing a quick glance at Jessie.

"Oh, she just lost the ability to channel the magic, nothing more. Last I knew she was living in a small offshoot town around here." He gave a soft smile.

"What would she have to do?" asked Sirius.

The Senior Ollivander looked at Jessie then at his son who gave a slight nod. "She would have to find someone, a wizard close to her who cared for her very deeply. Siblings work." He added eyeing James. "A connection needs to be made between the squib and her partner, essentially bonding his magic to her so she could essentially borrow it."

"Borrowed magic?" James asked incredulously. "Let's go. I've heard enough. Come on Jess, this is nuts and I doubt it would work anyway."

"Would it hurt to try?" Jessie asked in a whisper to the Ollivanders.

"No, it wouldn't. And from what I' understand it is painless to the donor too. Most spells aren't even noticed."

"Then why is this borrowed magic so dangerous?" James asked.

"Bonded Magic is what it translates to." The Senior corrected. "As I said, most magic goes unnoticed, however, the more powerful, the bigger drain on the donor. And should the most heinous of spells be attempted, the donor would die instead of the target."

"Will you try James? Please?" Jessie asked quietly looking at her brother with home in her eyes. "You know I'd never be able to perform any major magic anyway, so I'd never put you at risk." She added.

He sighed. Harry had a feeling James rarely denied his sister much, he knew from the last memory he was deadly protective of her. "Okay." He sighed again. "I still think it's a waste of time, a myth, a legend that might not even be real."

"Thank you!" She practically squealed, hugging James. She turned around to the air of Ollivanders and asked "How do we start?"

While Jessie was getting her wand, Harry watched the other two. James still appeared annoyed but didn't let it spoil her excitement. He sat on a stool in the corner reading a copy of the Daily Prophet. Sirius, on the other hand, hardly took his eyes off of her.

"We're ready for you, Mr. Potter." The Junior Ollivander said and Harry and James looked up. James approached the counter.

"Hawthorne wand, core of Unicorn Hair, ten and three-quarter inches long. Excellent for this process." Senior said. Everyone looked at him curiously. "Hold out your wands, tip to tip, please." He said then raised his wand over theirs and began chanting. Ribbons of red, gold, blue, and silver intertwined around the two wands and when the spell ended, the ribbons dropped and faded into the floor.

Senior Mr. Ollivander sighed. "I'm sorry, but this bond isn't strong enough. Perhaps one of you has given your heart to another?" Jessie stared blankly at James, who blushed.

"You're after that Lily girl, aren't you?" Jessie whispered/

"I can't help it." James blushed even more.

Jessie placed the wand back on the counter as James paid for it anyway, feeling bad for wasting their time and they turned to leave. Harry began to follow when Sirius spoke up again.

"May I try?" he asked. "They said it only has to be someone who cared, right?" Someone who hasn't given his heart to anyone, right?"

James laughed. "Like you'd ever five your heart to just one girl anyway, always off snogging a new girl every week." He sobered for a second. "Yeah, if the Ollivander's don't mind wasting more time and Jessie's okay with it, sure, but I still say it's a sham."

When Harry looked at Jessie and Sirius they were both red in the face. Jessie blushing embarrassed at Sirius's offer and Sirius a bit hot around the collar from James rubbing him the wrong way."

"Well get over here and touch wands if you want to try again. I'm not getting any younger."

Sirius and Jessie touched wand tips. The spell began again. This time the ribbons burst forth with purpose, wrapping themselves tightly around the two wands then the two owners, glowing brighter until the spell ended. With one last pulse of light, the ribbons slowly faded around them.

"Curious" said Senior Mr. Ollivander. "I've never heard of a reaction that strong. It's almost as if…" He shook his head. "Go on, my dear, give it a try. Repeat after me. 'Lumos'."

She did and the tip of her wand ignited brilliantly.

"You son of a…" James began, raising his wand at his best friend.

"Run" Jessie breathed and Harry was dragged out the door on Sirius's heels as he sped out the door.

The memory wavered a bit and Harry saw Sirius come to a skidding halt just feet in front of Remus, Peter, and Jessie all aiming their wands in his direction. Remus jerked his head in a way telling Sirius silently to get behind him.

"Let me at him! I promise I won't kill him." James growled furiously staring at Sirius.

"Take another step in anger and I'm afraid we'll have to defend him." Moony said calmly. "Remember what I said?" he whispered to Jessie, she nodded, tears in her eyes.

Spells began to fly, all fractions of a second apart. "Protego!" "Incarcerus!" "Stupify!"

James's rope binding spell hit Remus's protection spell but not before Jessie's stunning spell hit James square in the chest. He fell back on to the ground motionless.

Jessie and Sirius walked over to the unconscious form of James lying in the street. "I'll take care of this." He said gently, looking down in Jessie's tear covered face. "I need to face him sometime. Moony, please take Jessie home." Jessie stood to leave and Sirius looked back down at James, not casting any more glances at Jessie as she walked away.

As the memory began to fade, Harry pulled his head out of the pensieve. He couldn't help it. The wand in his pocket was his Aunt Jessie's, but she wasn't a witch. His Aunt Jessie was a squib.


	27. Jessica's Search

Professor Nigellus found herself also unable to concentrate that day. Her mind was filled with worries and fear. What if she got caught? What if she messed up? What if she were wrong? What if she were too late?

"Professor Nigellus are you alright?" asked a Hufflepuff third year girl in her last class for the afternoon. She had assigned them an in-class essay on Muggle Transportation while her concentration centered on her plans for the evening.

"I'm fine, Miss Patterson. Thank you." She told the girl and forced herself back into the classroom while the kids wrote their essays. Dinner would be starting soon and she would have only a small window in which to accomplish tonight's task.

When the bell rang to dismiss the students to dinner, she collected their papers and placed them in a neat pile on her desk to grade later. She calmly collected the bag from under her desk and made her way down to the dungeon classrooms. The corridor was empty. _So far, go good_ she thought to herself as she pushed opened the door to the Potions Classroom. Memories came flooding back to her but she had to keep her nerve, her concentration on her goal.

"Jessica, my Dear!" boomed a voice from the desk and she jumped. "What brings you down here?" Professor Slughorn asked cheerfully. _He was always so trusting_; she thought but tried to smile back at him. Her nerves were frayed but she needed in that supply closet. Could she lie to another Professor?

"I was wondering if you had any Essence of Dittany, Belladonna Juice, and Ginger Root Powder?" Jessica asked, trying to remember the simplest potion she could think of.

"My dear, if you have a stomach ache that bad, perhaps you should visit Madam Pomfrey. She has the Tummy Remedy all mixed up and waiting for anyone who needs it." He suggested then looked at her slyly. "Unless you snuck down here to mix it yourself so no one would think the wrong thing?" he nudged her slightly, teasingly with his elbow. "Perhaps you've taken a fancy to Franklin Haymaker? I've seen the way he looks at you." He said jokingly.

"No Sir, it's not that." Jessie couldn't help but laugh with him on this. "I was just hoping I could try my hand at potions again" she lied easily. "It's been years and this was the simplest concoction I could remember."

"Sure, sure, sure, be my guest." He said as he summoned the hardware she would need to a nearby table. "The storeroom hasn't changed much since I was teacher. Professor Snape must have approved of my organizational skills" he chuckled. "I must be off, SlugClub meeting tonight, you know? Help yourself to anything you need, My Dear." He said as walked out of the room.

She walked to the storeroom door and slowly pulled it open. A light automatically came on above her head as she entered and took in the vast supplies of potions, potion ingredients, glass vials, and more. She rummaged through the shelves and found the first of the items she really needed. There were at least a dozen Wound Sealing Potions sitting on the shelves, no doubt in case a student got clumsy with his or her knife. She grabbed three and prayed it would be enough. The second item on her shopping list was also easy to find, a bottle of Pepper-Up Potion, for fainting, she supposed. The third item was harder to find, it was sitting in a box covered in dust in the back of the room. She reached into the box and grabbed a single Bezoar stone. The last ingredient was nowhere to be seen. She hunted long and hard but it wasn't in the storeroom.

She sat down at Professor Slughorn's desk and began rummaging through it. It wasn't here either. She huffed. She knew she couldn't waste any more time than necessary, but knew she needed to put the supplies away that he had laid out for her. He knew her to be polite enough to clean up after herself. Something Slughorn had said hit her as she began to leave the Potions Classroom. Professor Snape had been Potions Master at Hogwarts. She closed the door to the classroom quietly behind her.

"Aren't you in the wrong area of the school, Squib?" came a deep, rumbling, accusing voice from behind her. She froze as she turned and came face to face with the Bloody Baron, Slytherin's resident ghost.

"P… Professor S... Slughorn gave me permission to brew a bottle of Tummy Remedy" she said as she held up a glass vial. No magic required to make it and I wanted to see if I still could." She answered him. "Please do not call me a squib, Baron, S…Sir."

"Hmph!" he snorted. "I never thought you were smart enough for that; a little squib hanging around one of my Slytherins!" he added as he started floating away.

"Excuse me, Baron, Sir?" she stammered out. "Would you please point me to Professor Snape's old quarters?" she asked.

He eyed her curiously, but she knew the business of the living rarely affected the dead here unless it was after hours. "It's the second door on your right." He said still floating away. "It's locked. Don't ask me how to open it either because I don't care."

She stood in front of Snape's room; his personal office and bedroom were on the other side of the locked door. She had no magic of her own, so if a spell were required, she couldn't open it. She leaned her head against the wall and asked "Open". Nothing happened. She was beginning to feel defeated again, without the final ingredient she would fail. A student walked past her, looking at her strangely, but didn't say a word. A first year Slytherin by the looks of him but she didn't care, not if this stupid door wouldn't open. Desperate for anything, she started virtually chanting different stings of words at random until finally the door clicked open. "I love you, Lily" she had said to the door and she was too happy to have the door open for her to care.

She shut the door behind her and closed herself into total darkness. "Dang it, Severus!" she called out loud into empty room. She needed light. She reopened the room's door allowing a little light to flood the room. She opened her bag, pulled out a candle and a box of matches. This would provide just enough light to help her find what she needed, _if it's even here_, she thought.

With the candle lit and the door closed again, she began her search. Some of the things she saw in here disturbed her, bits and pieces of questionable material floating in various fluids made her skin crawl. The potions were nowhere in the office itself. There was nothing important left in his abandoned desk.

She gathered her senses and pushed open the door to his bedroom. It was sparsely decorated with only a bed, a dresser, and a side table. There were no windows for curtain and the walls were bare of any personalization. Not even the bed had any color; a long black blanket lay over the sheets. Curiosity got the best of her as she opened the dresser and side table drawers. They stood as empty as the eyes she remembered from the room's previous resident's portrait that hung on the wall in the Headmistress's office. _Headmaster_, she thought; that's where his personal effects had been taken. Where they were now, she had no idea.

She closed the bedroom door entering into the office space again. There was one other place to look; his closet that sat just inside the room's entrance. She used the one in her office to hang her cloaks and robes. She walked over to the door and it opened with a soft click. The candlelight flickered over shelves and shelves of potions and more ingredients, some she recognized as rare and even deadly. _Why would he keep these kinds of things near students? _She thought to herself as she searched the shelves.

"Finally!" She said out loud as her hand closed around a crystal bottle of a bluish liquid that glowed softly in the candlelight. She held it to her heart before placing it gently into her bag; the most important ingredient was now hers. She turned to exit when she saw three glass bottles of red liquid sitting near the door; its label had caught her eye. She grabbed them all and closed the closet door behind her. She was smiling knowing that half of her plan was almost complete.

She exited Snape's office carefully, making sure the coast was clear as she closed the door. When she tugged the knob again she was happy to find it had locked itself behind her. She glanced at her watch, dinner was almost over and students would be coming down the corridor any moment. She hurried along, back up to her South Tower bedroom to review the remaining part of her plan. She still had time tonight to complete it but she had to plan it out precisely. Calendar and calculator in hand, she worked out the remaining details. Everything else would be left to fate; she just hoped she was precise enough.

She walked out of her quarters and into the Phoenixsong common room and saw most of her students there relaxing, doing homework, or just plain goofing off. She needed help, but who to ask.

"George Weasley" she called over the slight commotion of laughing and giggling.

"What's up, Professor?" he asked after he walked over to her.

"You are the oldest student here and I would like you to please keep an eye on the house while I go to the Three Broomsticks for a little while." She asked knowing a few of the other students would hear too.

"Sure, but I'd rather accompany you for a drink, could use one after the torment Filch gave me for coming back." He said smiling, nearly laughing.

She couldn't help chuckling softly. "I'll make it up to you, promise" she said as she walked out of the room.

She left the tower and made her way to the Entrance Hall, thankful no one else confronted her as she made her way out the front doors. She walked down the path to the gates of the castle; they would open for her, recognizing her as one of the school's teachers. They would even permit her reentrance on her way back. Teachers occasionally took a few hours off to journey into Hogsmeade for drinks or to the post office or whatever other business they wanted to conduct there. But she turned off the High Street up a long, winding, narrow path instead of heading into the little wizarding town. She had other plans than to hit The Three Broomsticks tonight.


	28. Memories Revealed Part Two  Growing Up

Harry shook his head and quickly dove his head back into the pensieve. He'd ponder Jessie being a squib later.

The last memory was still fading and the new one formed around him. He found himself in the Great Hall decked out for Halloween. The feast was over, all the tables pushed up against the walls, and costumed students dancing in the middle of the room. Harry looked around and finally found a masked boy with his own messy black hair leaning against the wall talking with Remus. Peter wasn't too far off sitting at a table sipping a bottle of butterbeer. Harry knew Sirius had to be near but he couldn't find him.

James was wearing classic dress robes and a basic red and gold masquerade mask. Remus appeared to be dressed in jeans and a white t-shirt both ripped and torn, and if Harry had to guess, he charmed the hair all over his body to grow. On closer inspection he looked like the muggle idea of a werewolf. Peter's costume was a grey set of robes, a tattered rope spell-o-taped to the back and hand drawn pink nose and black whiskers on his face.

Jessie approached them. She was wearing a long deep lavender dress that reflected the low candlelights softly. A silver tiara sat on her long satin black hair, and fluttery fairy wings that sparkled in light, pale shades of pink, blue, lavender, and silver were attached to her back. Her make-up seemed to sparkle too.

She walked up sulkily to James. "The girls here are worse than muggles. Nevermind him." she pointed at Remus "He looks nothing like a real werewolf, but they had to point out that real fairies are tiny ugly little things only slightly more useful than fireflies." She sighed. "I think I'm going up to Gryffindor Tower early. This party bites."

"My dear fairy princess…" came a smooth voice from behind them in an exaggerated Romainian accent. Sirius was dressed in a light grey double-breasted tuxedo jacket with matching vest, a black bow tie with a button of what appeared to be sparkling diamonds, with a dark grey silk shirt underneath. They all turned. He had bowed to Jessie. "Surely you vill not deny a single dance to a prince before you retire for de night?" James rolled his eyes wile Remus, Peter, and Harry laughed. Jessie played her part flawlessly. She blushed, curtsied, and took Sirius's hand. Before leading her out onto the dance floor Sirius donned a matching top hat and smiled fully, revealing a set of perfectly matched vampire teeth.

Harry wanted to stay with his father but he knew Sirius saved this memory for a reason so he followed the couple out to the floor.

"You know, all you did was annoy James back there. He's still not happy about the bonding." Jessie told Sirius as they began slow dancing.

"He tells me he's over it and acts as if it never happened."

"You're his best friend and I'm his sister…"

"Then he should be happy. It'll only bring us closer."

"And if it doesn't, I think he fears he'll have to choose sides." Jessie said.

"Well let's make sure he never has to choose." He leaned down apparently to seal their first kiss but Jessie pulled away.

"I think you're right, maybe we shouldn't make him choose." She said. "Thank you for the dance." She added as she turned to walk out to the Entrance Hall leaving Sirius looking confused, hurt, and alone.

The memory faded but when the new one started Harry found the scene didn't change too much. He was still in the Great Hall, the tables were changed to smaller round more intimiate ones and Harry realized it looked a lot like it did for the Yule Ball he attended in his fourth year for the Tri-Wizard Tournament. It was Christmas time and the dancing had already begun.

Harry was standing next to Sirius who was sitting at a table full of girls. He looked closer to his own age than in any of the other memories so far, he guessed it must have been his seventh year. Harry saw his parents on the opposite side of the room dancing and laughing together.

"Isn't that James Potter's sister heading this way?" one of the girls asked.

"I heard she's a squib." Said another.

"Dumbledore wouldn't let a squib attend Hogwarts." Said a third.

"Why is she here anyway?"

"Why is she coming over here?" They giggled.

"Sirius, Honey, if she comes any closer, send her away."

Sirius nodded looking uncomfortable as he tried not to watch Jessie approach.

Harry began to wonder who these girls were, by their attitudes he wondered if they were possibly Slytherin with their 'better than her' opinions of themselves but thought Sirius better than that.

Jessie did approach the table, proud and strong, standing tall and confident. "Hey Sirius." She said smiling at him. "May I have this dance?" She asked as she held her hand to him. The girls at the table laughed but Jessie stood her ground.

Sirius looked up at her but his face was unreadable, he glanced at the laughing girls then in the direction on James then back at Jessie. He stood up and sighed "Now isn't a good time, Jess." He said and the girls giggled more.

"I was hoping to talk to you alone." She looked up into his unreadable grey eyes.

"Walk away Jess." He whispered.

"Not before you give me just one dance." She said as she grabbed his hand.

"I can't" he whispered again. "Not right now, we'll talk later."

She looked from him to the other girls at the table, all still giggling. Her confidence faltered as she asked. "Then can we talk in the Entrance Hall?"

One of the girls sauntered up and put her arms around Sirius's waist. "He said 'No" so go away already. Besides, we don't want your kind here."

Jessie opened her mouth looking as if she was about to lash out at the girl but Sirius interrupted. "It would be better if you'd leave." He said and Harry couldn't tell if it was the goading of the girl holding on him or something else pushing him when he added "I have better things to do than dance with a filthy, good-for-nothing, useless squib!"

Jessie stood there shocked, tears immediately flooding her face from her eyes, then turned away and ran. Harry turned angrily at Sirius. As the memory faded Harry could've sworn he saw regret in Sirius's eyes.

When the next memory formed Harry was standing next to Sirius sitting at a table again but this time it was the back yard of a house at a picnic table. Harry recognized the area as the grad party from the photos in the box. Sirius was nursing a glass of Firewhiskey, alone, and staring off and James and Lily standing with Jessie who was holding on to a young man with dark blond hair, brown eyes, built strong and as tall as Ron. She looked up at him and he kissed her lightly on the lips, she smiled.

The scene faded and Harry found himself standing at another party, this time in a house. He was standing next to Sirius and James. Looking at his father was like looking into a mirror, almost. Harry smiled.

"Engaged, huh? She really likes this muggle mutt?" Sirius asked James.

"Nah, I like the muggle but I think she loves him." James laughed. "His name is Matt, by the way."

"I know what I said." Sirius chuckled. "Well, as long as Mutt treats her right. He screws up, you're sicking the Marauder's on him, right?"

James laughed "Wouldn't have it any other way. Cheers" He held up his glass and the scene swirled Harry.

He found himself standing outside a small house that appeared to be in a suburb of London. All the tiny houses were close together, closer than they had been on Privet Drive. He looked around and saw a group of young children walking with a slow moving, limping black dog. The dog was leaning on one of the kids but when they tried to lead it to another house, it growled and continued walking as best as it could.

When the dog approached Harry, he realized it was Sirius/Snuffles hurt badly, bleeding, and panting in agony. He wanted to reach out and help but knew he couldn't. Sirius turned down the small walkway towards the small house in front of Harry, he followed.

When Sirius reached the porch he collapsed in a heap of fur and blood. Most of the children stopped at the street as if afraid to get close to the house, but one boy walked trembling up with Sirius and when he saw the dog fall, he knocked on the door. The seconds until someone answered seemed like an eternity to Harry and he had to keep reminding himself that no matter how bad Sirius looked, he survived this to give him the memory.

When Jessie opened the door the boy asked in a shaky voice "Is this your dog?"

Jessie gave an audible gasp when her eyes fell on Sirius. She knew, Harry thought, by the look in her eyes. She knew the secret of the Marauders.

"Yes, he is. Thank you for bringing him to me." She said as she bent down to examine him.

"Is he gonna be ok?" asked the boy.

"I'm not sure." She said. "Will you help me carry him inside?"

"I… I shouldn't." he said looking around nervously.

Jessie sighed. "I'm sorry" a tear falling down her face. "If it helps any, he's not home." She avoided the boy's eyes.

"Er… um… yeah… sure. I don't want to see the dog stay hurt."

Together they lifted the dog form of Sirius, who whined the whole time, and placed him on the bed in what must have been a guest room. Jessie reached in her pocket and pulled out a few small bills and gave it to the boy. "Thank you." She said softly as she began examining Sirius more closely. "I'll take it from here." The boy ran.

The memory flickered to black as Sirius yelped in pain.

When the memory came back he was in the same room. Sirius was still in dog form but bandaged. Jessie was lying by his side, apparently watching and waiting.

When he opened his eyes she said "Do NOT change into your human form. Do you understand?"

Sirius gave a soft "woof" and Harry heard "Yes". Harry figured since it was Sirius's memory he would remember what he said in either form.

"Your human form can't handle the damage to the areas your dog form was hit in. This stab wound" she gently touched one of the bandages "could move. Dog and Human insides might be about the same, but their aligned differently. Just to be safe, stay like this."

Sirius gave a soft grumble and another woof. Harry heard 'Yes, Jess. I said I understood." And for some reason Jessie looked at him funny and shook her head.

"Are you comfortable?" she asked as she turned to clean up the mess on the dresser.

Sirius barked softly and growled. Harry heard "No, I'm hurt. Where's James?"

"James won't be here for a few days and I told you not to…" she started as she spun around. "You're still a dog." Her face went pale.

Woof. "Yes"

"I could've sworn…"

Barking "Sworn what?"

"You can talk!"

Grumbling "No, I can't"

"But I can understand you."

"Then you're hallucinating." He barked.

"I am not hallucinating, Sirius Black!"

Sirius swore, barking in disbelief. "You can understand me?"

"That's what I just said."

Sirius laughed a little "I've got to be dreaming"

"You and me both!"

The scene faded as Harry pulled his head out of the pensieve again in shock. Jessie could talk to Sirius in his dog form? Was this some kind of side effect from the bond they had or was his dog form some kind of familiar.


	29. The Shrieking Shack

The Shrieking Shack was just visible in the moonlight ahead of her. She knew she couldn't go inside yet, it wasn't safe yet. She needed to hide and hide herself completely but still be able to see the Shack's front door. She found such a place in a grove of trees far enough not to be seen, but close enough, she hoped, to not be too late. She looked at her watch again; she had made it up here in plenty of time. When her watch hit ten o'clock she pulled the time-turner out of her shirt, adjusted the dial and gave it a few turns.

The world around her went into reverse, night to day and back again as she traveled backwards to her destination, nearly six months in the past. The reverse stopped and she found herself standing in the same place but the scenery had changed. The leaves that had covered the ground in colors of red, gold, and brown were back on the trees in their proud early summer greens. She ducked down and watched the door to the shack closely. She could see dim light behind the ill-fitting door, she wondered if she calculated the time correctly. Was she too early or possibly way too late? For the latter, she would never know for hours, when she knew it would be very much too late to complete her task. She waited. She saw a black figure approach the Shack and hesitantly enter through the door. She recognized the the stride, but still she waited; it was turning out to be the longest night of her life.

Then she heard the yelling. It was torment to her heart to sit there in the dark and do nothing. Then she heard the scream that ripped through her soul. She had made it in time but never thought how excruciating it would be to be forced to sit here and wait. A figure in a dark cloak walked out of the Shack's door. He was so pale white that his head and hands appeared to be floating freely in the cold, night air. Beside him, floating in a beautiful starry sphere was one of the largest snakes she had ever seen in her life. She held her breath as he glided down the path, she couldn't risk being seen or heard by anyone, let alone by him. She knew she had to wait just a few more seconds after he left the path and out of earshot of her footsteps.

She pulled her cloak up around her to hide her hands and the silver that had begun to streak her hair. She put her ear to the door, listening closely at the muffled sounds from within, tears falling from her eyes. She heard what she thought to be the shuffling of feet moving away, out of the room. She flung the door open as fast as she could and stumbled to the floor next to the body of Severus Snape.

"Please don't be dead yet!" She cried quietly, afraid of attracting Harry and his friends back into the room from the tunnel she knew they had traveled in.

From her bag she pulled out the collection of supplies she stole from the school, not sure what to do first. Blood was still seeping from the wounds on his neck; his eyes were open and blindly staring off into nowhere. She rolled him on his back and started the chest compressions she learned in the muggle world but when she pressed down she pushed out more blood. Her tears fell faster as she began doubting her plan.

A voice filled the Shrieking Shack as loudly as if he were standing next to her. "You have fought valiantly…" Lord Voldemort began but as soon as she realized he wasn't standing next to her, she went to work. Time was running out and this was her only shot at saving Snape.

She grabbed one of the bottles of Wound Sealing Serum and emptied the contents on his neck, rubbing it in the wounds but nothing happened. Precious moments wasted, she tipped a few drops of the Blue liquid, the anti-venom, into each puncture wound on his neck. The blue began to spread through the openings, coating the holes. She took the second bottle of Wound Sealing Serum and repeated the process of making sure it worked its way into the wounds. Nothing happened that she could see so she grabbed lengths of cloth from her bag and began wrapping his neck loosely, just enough to cover the punctures. Tears still falling, she began compressions again; no blood escaped and for a brief second she wondered if he'd already lost it all. She breathed into him and started compressions again and continued as she was taught. She knew the vital minutes until what muggles called "brain death" were precious and few and running out quickly, if they hadn't already. She didn't even bother to check her watch at the first scream until now because she was afraid she'd give up too soon.

She continued breathing for him, urging his heart to beat again. "Please, Severus, please! Don't leave! Don't give up!" She cried between breaths. "Severus, come back! Please!" she cried again.

With one last breath to give before the sobbing took over, with one last push into his chest she gave him every last ounce of strength she had left before she was consumed. Her head fell onto his chest as she finally couldn't do it any longer, weeping into the soft black material of his cloak. "I'm sorry" she whispered into his lifeless chest still shaking from her own grief.

Jessica couldn't help herself. She continued to sob softly into the soft black cloak that covered Severus Snape's chest. She had failed. She had been too late. Part of her wanted to stay here forever and allow grief to consume her. She had lost her parents, her brother, her husband, and all the real friends she had ever known. The last chance she had at a connection to her past at Hogwarts was lying under her head, lifeless still despite her best efforts.

She knew in her heart that even though the current staff at Hogwarts had learned to respect her teaching abilities, they still questioned whether it was proper to allow a squib to teach. They had also voiced their opinions the previous day on how dangerous it was to harbor a squib within the castle walls when the Death Eaters were hunting them and now apparently killing them. How soon would they realize she was squib and come after her? What lengths would they go to just to get their hands on another one? She had a feeling if it were not for Professor McGonagall and the portraits of three past Headmasters, she would not have been teaching today. Dumbledore, Phineas Nigellus, and Severus Snape all stood up for her.

"Word through the other portraits is that the children come out of her classroom happy to have finally learned the truth about muggle ways." Dumbledore had said. "Even our muggle-borns are complimenting her abilities."

"Squib or not, she knows what she is doing when it comes to muggles. It is why I suggested her in the first place." Snape had said.

"Who cares if she's a squib! This school protects its students and staff." Phineas Nigellus had said. "The Black line lives and I will not stand by quietly as you sit here and talk about kicking my family out of this school!" he huffed. She remembered laughing at him, and thanking him.

She had her kids to think about, not only the twins but also the students and her nephew Harry, she couldn't let herself fall apart completely.

Her nephew Harry… she thought. He looked so much like James it was scary. He still didn't know he had family so close to him. With all the reports of "I'm Harry Potter's _" in the Daily Prophet she had read, she knew he wouldn't believe her. Just one more claim to fame liar for him to deal with and she knew she had no proof of their connection. All the stories of her past growing up with James could be considered lies. And since he had never said anything or ever mentioned an aunt when talking to his friends about his past, she knew no one had bothered to tell him about her; the outcast, the squib.


	30. Memories Revealed Part Three  Best Days

Harry stood there in disbelief for a second but not wanting to lose his place in the pensieve, he dove back in.

The scene unfolded before him. Harry found himself standing in what appeared to be a small flat. He could see out the window from where he stood and it looked like he was about three floors off the ground. Taking in his surroundings, he saw a combined kitchen, living room, and dining room area. A short hallway led off between the dining room and living room areas where there were three closed doors.

Sirius was sitting on the couch with a television on playing that day's muggle headlines. He must have been bored, Harry thought, because Sirius was bouncing a small ball of blue light off the wall repeatedly with his wand. Harry played the same game with one of Dudley's rubber balls once but after a few minutes Uncle Vernon came in and took the ball away complaining about damage to the wall.

The clock on the wall chimed, Harry saw it was now midnight in this memory. "Happy Birthday" Sirius mumbled to himself, sighed, and continued to bounce the ball though bouncing it a little harder now.

There was a soft knock on the door. Sirius's wand pointed straight at it. "Identify yourself!" he hollered.

"It's Jessie." Came a barely audible voice from the other side of the door, but it was loud enough for Sirius to hear. He bounded off the couch and practically flew to the door. He checked the peep-hole and opened it, wand still held tight in his hand.

When he caught sight of her, anything he had been previously thinking disappeared. She looked a mess. Rain had soaked her hair and clothes, blood and tears streaked the right side of her face and the eye on that side had darkened to purples, blues, and blacks. In her right arm she was holding a small suitcase, her left arm was shaking as she tried to hold it tightly against her chest. From the angle Harry was seeing it, it looked broken.

"Is James here?" she asked.

"Er… no… he's not due back for two hours." Sirius answered looking over her more carefully. "Here, let me take that." He said reaching for the suitcase. She handed it to him but didn't move. She looked as though she were about to fall over. Sirius dropped the case just inside the door and reached for her but she pulled back, obviously scared. "Jess… it's me… I'm not going to hurt you. You know that. Come in and let's get you cleaned up." She took a few tentative steps, limping as she crossed into the room. "What happened?" he asked softly closing the apartment door but she just stood there and shook her head. He led her over to a stool in the kitchen and helped her sit down. "Stay here, I'm going to go get some things from the other room." He said then darted into the farthest door, the bathroom.

Jessie sat quietly letting more tears fall, not bothering to wipe them away as looked around the flat. When the door to the bathroom slammed shut, she jumped, startled by the noise. Sirius came back with a few potion and ointment bottles, some bandages, and a dark blue bathrobe and placed them on the kitchen counter.

"Here, put this on. I'll turn around while you do." He said, handing her the robe.

"I… I don't think I can." She whispered. "I think it's broken." She tried to hold up her arm but winced in pain.

Harry could see many things play across Sirius's face and he gently took her arm in his hand; anger, sympathy, and misery among them. "Episky" he whispered waving his wand above her arm. "I can take care of the rest too, hold still." She nodded slightly and he repeated it on her black eye and her ankle. "Are you gonna tell me what happened?" he asked. Harry had a feeling he already knew.

She shook her head "No, I only want to go over it once, when James gets here." She said quietly.

"Do you want me to call him back?"

"No… I know he's busy with Order stuff. That's more important than this."

Sirius sighed. "The door on the right is a spare room. Go get out of those soaking wet clothes. I'll bring you some spare clothes that might fit."

She stood slowly from the chair and thanked Sirius again when she found she could take a step without limping. She walked into the spare room and Sirius disappeared into the room across the hall, when he came out he had an armful of various articles of clothing. He knocked on the door and offered them to her. "I wasn't sure what you'd like so I brought a few things, I don't know what you have in your suitcase, but I brought it back too." He explained and she giggled softly as she took the things from him. "Feel free to make yourself at home. The bathroom is at the end of the hall and there's some stuff in the fridge if you get hungry." He rambled.

She smiled softly. "Thank you, Sirius. If you don't mind, I think I'd like to lie down for a little while before James gets back." She said and lightly kissed his cheek before closing the door. Sirius leaned his back against the door and sighed.

The memory flickered briefly. Harry could tell it was the same night but over an hour later. Sirius had left the television on to the same news channel but was reading a newspaper on the couch. They both heard the door to the room Jessie was in open, Sirius froze in the middle of turning a page.

"Sirius?" Jessie said quietly, he turned to look at her. "May I stay out here with you until he gets here? I don't really want to be alone anymore."

"Er… Yeah, sure." He said. "I'm on Muggle News-Watch this week; I need to leave the television on." He placed the paper on the coffee table in front of him.

"The TV doesn't bother me, I've fallen asleep with in on before, I'm a muggle, remember?" she laughed as she got comfortable on the couch, her head resting on Sirius's lap.

After a while Sirius turned off the TV, another program had come on. Jessie readjusted herself so her head was now resting in the crook of Sirius's shoulder.

"I thought you were asleep." He said quietly.

"I'm not tired."

Harry could see a strained look on Sirius's face as he let his arm drop lightly around Jessie's side.

"Do you remember the seventh year Yule Dance?" she asked him, her head still against his chest, his face went pale white.

"Jessica…" he started "I'm sorry."

"That answered my question but I simple 'yes' would've been enough. So you remember I wanted to talk to you that night?"

He sighed heavily and regret was plastered all over his face. "Yes" he said.

"I never did get around to talking to you, about what I wanted to."

"You still want to? After all these years?" he asked, worry now dancing across his face with the regret.

"I wanted to get you alone so I could tell you I had made a very important decision that day." She rested her hand on his chest over his heart. "That I was going to tell you once and for all exactly how I felt about you, Sirius Black."

He swallowed, hard, with fear in his eyes. Probably thankful Jessie couldn't see his face. "I take it it's something I don't know yet?" he asked delicately.

"I was going to tell you 'To hell with James and what he thought', I was in love with you."

Sirius closed his eyes and barely took a breath as if those last six words had stabbed him where her hand still rested. "Oh, Jessica…" he said in barely a breathed whisper. "I'm… I'm so sorry." A single had begun to fall from Sirius's eyes as the realization that Jessie may have been remembering the past but she was talking about the present. He looked down at her, pulling her face up so she was looking in his eyes when he said "I love you too, Jessica. From the moment I first saw you I knew I wanted you in my life forever."

"Then why…"

"Stupid, stubborn male idiocy, childish pride. The greatest single mistake of my life."

"Say it again." She whispered.

"Stupid, stubborn, idiot?"

"No…" she giggled lightly. "the little bit before that."

"I love you, Jessica."

She pushed herself up a little and said "I love you too, Sirius" and kissed him.

The scene flickered. The lights were out in the flat but the streetlights illuminated enough that Harry could see Sirius and Jessie fast asleep curled up on the couch together. The sound of a key in the lock woke them up. The door flew open.

"Hey Sirius, we're back. Anything on the…" James started as he flipped on the light and saw his sister lying in Sirius's arms. "What's going on here?"

"It's obvious, James." Lily said. "Let's go home."

"No… Jessie… let's go. I'll drop you off at your place on the way.

"I can't go back there." Jessie whispered. "I want to stay here."

"What are you talking about?" James asked, still giving Sirius the evil eye.

Jessie explained finally that she had told Matt, her now ex-fiancé, about her connection to the wizarding world and about her wand. She had shown him a simple levitation spell to prove she wasn't lying. He accused her of being one of those evil witches from the old muggle storybooks and then possessed by some demonic creature and finally of playing a cruel, evil joke on him that deserved punishment. If she hadn't tossed her wand under the refrigerator, he would've snapped it in half.

Lily had run over to her and taken her in her arms, holding her as she cried out her story. James was pumped, ready for retaliation on anyone that had hurt his sister.

Jessie gently pulled out of Lily's hug and curled back up into Sirius's.

"Please, James. I want to stay here." Jessie asked.

"Sirius, you're my best mate, man but I draw the line at you trying to add my sister to your list of women. She's been through enough tonight."

"What list?" Sirius asked. "There weren't any other women."

Jessie, Lily, and James all looked at him in shock and disbelief.

"All those girls in school? Those women in the Leaky Cauldron last week?" James bit out.

But Sirius could only see Jessie as he looked down into her eyes. "I lied" he said softly to her.

"What?" said James.

"I said, I lied." Sirius finally looked up at James. "Go to the Order and get the Veratiserum if you want. I. Lied." He looked back and Jessie, his eyes flossing over. "There was only ever one woman for me, all these years and she's here now, in my arms."

Jessie smiled. James stood shocked and Lily quietly said "James, it's time to go. She's finally in good hands" as she pulled him gently out the door.

The memory faded and Harry found himself standing in the Office of the Headmaster. James and Sirius were standing in front of Dumbledore.

"My apologies…" Dumbledore said to Sirius "that I do not have proper music to play as she… for lack of a better term… walks up the aisle." He smiled. "When you're ready, Miss Potter" he said and Sirius stiffened.

"Don't tell me you're nervous?" James asked, laughing quietly. "You told me last week this is what you wanted."

"She can still change her mind." Sirius whispered.

The door to Professor Dumbledore's private rooms opened and Fawkes began to sing from his perch. His song filled the room and even in Sirius's memory, Harry could feel it filling him with hope and joy. Jessie took Sirius's hand and the small, quiet, short ceremony began over the soft sounds of the Phoenix's song.

"I now pronounce you Husband and Wife. You may now kiss your bride." Dumbledore concluded, smiling at Sirius. And as they kissed, Fawkes flew gently off his perch and landed on Jessie's shoulder, still singing softly, and leaned his beak down to the top of her head as if kissing her.

"I always knew he took a liking to you the moment he met you." Dumbledore said, beaming.


	31. The Awakening

Jessica's thoughts swam in her head at light speed in just a few seconds. She knew she couldn't stay here forever, even if she wanted to. Someone would be coming to look for his body later. Just one more minute she thought.

"Am… I… in… hell?" whispered a staggering voice. She nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound. She stilled herself on his chest, held her breath. He was breathing, barely. His heart beat was barely audible and inconsistent. She needed to move fast now.

"No, not yet, not if I can help it" she said as strongly as she could. His consciousness was fading fast. "Swallow this, now" she said.

"Can't"

"You can and you will!" she demanded as she pushed the Bezoar into his mouth. She gave him a swig of the anti-venom to wash it down with. "Drink this" she said as she now pressed the last bottle of Wound Sealing Serum to his lips.

"Must… be… hell… Hurts." He whispered weakly. "Cold, so cold" he sputtered.

"It'll get better, I promise, soon" she said, trying her best to comfort him. She took her cloak off and laid it down on top of him.

"S.s.s.s…so… cold…" he repeated, slipping away into the blackness she was trying to save him from.

"Severus!" she cried out, checking his pulse. It was barely there, weaker than before. "Severus! Wake up!" She yelled at him. His eyes flittered open slightly. "Drink, please!" she begged as she tipped the first bottle of red Blood Replenishing Serum to his lips. He spit half of it out as he choked on the thick, blood-like substance, his eyes flittering again as he fought to finish the bottle. She grabbed the second bottle and begged him to drink again. He had barely succeeded before passing out.

She knew they couldn't stay much longer, she didn't know when anyone would come to recover his once lifeless body. She sat down on the floor and watched him breathe, she could relax slightly. She still kept an ear out for approaching footsteps as she checked her watch. The traveling, waiting, fighting for his life, and watching had only taken up little more than an hour.

That voice boomed again making her jump and Severus's eyes flew open as the words of Lord Voldemort filled the tiny room of the Shack. "Harry Potter is dead."

"No" whispered Severus, a tear falling down into his black hair.

"He was killed as he ran away, trying to save himself while you lay down your lives for him." Continued Voldemort.

"No, Severus!" Jessie spoke gently in his ear, laying her hand across his chest. "He lives! Please believe me. Don't listen to him! Harry. Is. Alive!"

His face relaxed a bit and his breathing stilled. "Tell me then, my Angel, why am I not dead and why does the Dark Lord say Harry is?"

"It's a long story and I'll tell you once you're well. You need to drink for me, twice more." Jessie said softly. He drank the last bottle of Blood-Replenishing Serum and then the only bottle of Pepper-Up potion she had stolen for him.

The color began to come back into his face as he finally allowed himself to look upon the 'Angel' that had worked so hard to save his life. "Who are you?" he asked. "To whom do I owe my life?"

She laughed softly, "You'll figure it out soon enough but first you have a choice to make."

"I must be dead. A choice of heaven or hell?" he mused.

"No, you are alive, though barely." She said and explained what she had given him.

"I'll need more Blood-Replenishing Serum" he said as he struggled dizzyingly to sit up. "There are three bottles in my private stores in the school. We'll need to get to them" he added as he tried to steady himself against the wall.

"Um… no… those were the bottles from your private stores." She said sadly. Even if they managed to sneak into the school and get to them it would mean they wouldn't be there when she needed them.

"How did you get them?" he asked incredulously.

"Never mind how, we're running out of time." She said. "You need to make a choice and make it now. Harry believes you dead, he saw you attacked."

"I remember…" He said his eyes half closed, head against the wall.

"Well… you can either wait until someone from the school comes to find you, believing they're coming to recover your corpse…"

"No!" he said adamantly. "If either side finds me then you've wasted your time. They'll make sure I'm dead."

"Your other option," she continued ignoring his interruption. "Is to come with me, but you must trust me, no matter what."

"Trust you or die?" he asked. "What's your plan?"

"Plan? Well… I didn't plan much farther than saving your life." She answered sheepishly, cleaning up the bottles and removing her cloak from Severus.

He laughed. "You were either a Hufflepuff or Gryffindor when you were at school."

"Well… first step is to get out of here." She said. "Do you think you can walk?"

"Not alone" he said as she helped him to his feet.

They walked out of the Shrieking Shack together, stumbling every few feet.

"We can't apparate; all forms of magical transportation are being monitored." Severus said as she stepped into her previous hiding spot.

"Wasn't even going to suggest it. I know of one form that's clear." She said as she pulled out the time-turner from inside her shirt and wrapped the chain around them both. His eyes widened at the sight. "Who are you?" he asked and she just laughed as she adjusted the dials to bring them forward to a slightly safer time.

The time ran in fast forward. When they stopped, Severus slipped out of her arms and threw up on the ground.

"Sorry" they said almost simultaneously.

"When are we?" he asked taking in the nearly unchanged scene around him. He started shivering almost violently in the cool evening air. She wrapped her cloak around him again and began leading him down the path.

"It's only been one week since the battle, dusk. Still early enough to catch the Knight Bus into London," she answered and helped him raise his wand into the air.

With a loud BANG the Knight Bus appeared in front of them. "Welcome to the Knight Bus" said a sleepy, slow voice from the doorway.

"Saint Victoria's Hospital, please."

"That's a muggle hospital, are you sure you want to go there?" the conductor asked.

"My wife is a muggle and she needs a muggle hospital!" Snape lied. She saw the tip of his wand glow gold and the color drain from his face.

"Saint Victoria's it is, then." Said the conductor with a confused look on his face and off they went traveling at ungodly speeds and directions. Snape looked like he was going to vomit again.

"Here, drink this" Jessie said as she offered him the bottle of Tummy Remedy." He drank it quickly. "And from this moment on, do not cast anything else" she said reprimanding.

"I know you from somewhere" he whispered, she laughed quietly.

"Yes, yes you do." She smiled, looking away from him.

"Saint Victoria's Hospital, Sir, Ma'am." Said the conductor as the Knight Bus came to a screeching halt forcing a park bench and trash can to jump out of the way.

"Thank you" Jessie said politely as she helped Snape off the bus. "Let me do the talking, please" she said as they walked through the emergency room doors "and no more magic" she added noticing his color still draining.

They staggered up to the desk where a nurse was sitting. "We were camping and got attacked by a Stag! He tried to fend it off but it gorged his neck!" At her words the ER came alive taking Snape back into an exam room behind a curtain. Leaning down to his ear she whispered "Trust me" again and he relaxed but refused to let go of her hand. She knew he was out of his element, putting his full trust into her, his life on the line. She knew he hated being out of control.

"Do you know his blood type?" a doctor asked her.

"No" Jessie answered. "Half" said Snape and she had to choke back a laugh.

Pretty soon she saw him relax more; his color was downright blossoming in his cheeks from the medications and blood compared to how he looked when they came inl. "We need to knock him out to stitch up the wounds" a doctor informed her and Snape looked up, shocked. She squeezed his hand and explained that "knocking him out" meant only making him fall asleep so he wouldn't feel any pain while they fixed him up. He nodded, understanding.

"Please stay, my Angel." He mumbled as the medicine began kicking in.

"I'll be here when you go under and I'll be here when you wake up." She said reassuringly. He nodded and fell under.

When Snape woke, Jessie was still at his side. He opened his eyes, looked deep into hers, taking in every detail of her face. His eyes widened in realization then narrowed severely. "I find myself in your debt again, Miss Potter. I thought we were even."

She couldn't help but smile, as much as she hated what he did that day so many years ago, she knew he had done his best to save her. "You'll repay me soon enough" she said. "But first I need to finish what I started, get some rest tonight, they're releasing you tomorrow. Your Wound-Sealing Serum works wonders." She smiled.

"You're leaving me here, alone?" he asked, annoyed.

"What's wrong, Half-Blood?" she giggled. "Too long away from the Muggle World?" He sneered at her, igniting her giggles further. "We both need our rest," she finally managed to get out. "I'll stay. I can sleep in the recliner over here." She said curling up, covering herself with her cloak and using his as a pillow."

"What could you possibly still need to do to save me?" Severus asked. "I am alive and stable enough to be released."

"So you're just going to waltz right back into the wizard world tomorrow like nothing happened? Or were you planning on mingling into the muggle world like one of them with no money or clothing to blend in?"

"Fine. Good night, Miss Potter." He snapped.

"If you're going to be rude and not call a friend by her first name then you can call me Professor Nigellus!"

Snape chuckled. "You, a Professor? Of what?"

"The only thing I'm qualified for, Muggle Studies."

He stopped laughing. "You were serious?" he asked. "And Harry's really all right?"

"Yes to both. Well, I know Harry's ok. Maybe a little shaken because he saw you die, and had to confront and destroy … um… yeah… but as for me? I don't know." She thought out loud. "I changed my past. When no one wanted the job it was your portrait that suggested me and told McGonagall how and where to find me." She said, finally realizing the full implications of what she had done.

He sighed loudly. "A side effect of thinking with your heart and not with your head. Where are you right now, in your original time line?"

"I'm near where you left me. McGonagall's owl won't arrive for another two months." She answered.

"And you can't stay here much longer on borrowed time. You'll need to go back and face whatever time line you've now created for yourself."

It was her turn to sigh. "I know. But for now, get some rest. We'll figure more out once you're released."

Snape walked out of the hospital on his own and they walked to the nearest hotel that offered weekly apartment rates. She prepaid nearly six months of rent when they checked in. Then she left him to sleep while she purchased clothing, books, and food for him. When she got back, she crawled into the single queen sized bed next to him and slept.


	32. The Final Memories

Harry was still in the pensieve and now found himself back in the little flat. From Sirius's letter, he knew it was later that same evening. He saw Jessie and Sirius sitting in the kitchen area talking, eating, and laughing when Jessie suddenly dropped her spoon and gasped. The spoon clattered loudly on the floor.

"Something's wrong with James!" She said.

"If there were something wrong his patronus would be standing in the middle of the living room." Sirius said.

"No, I mean it. Something is wrong! I know it is!"

No matter what Sirius tried over the next few minutes, he couldn't calm her down. "Fine. Would you feel better if I took the bike over to check on them?"

"Yes, but apparate. It's faster." She said.

"Sweetheart, there is nothing wrong. I'll take the bike and be back before you know it." Jessie was visibly shaking, but silently agreed. Sirius gently kissed her forehead, her nose, and then her lips. "I love you, Mrs. Black." He said smiling down at her where she was still sitting. "Everything will be okay. I promise."

Sirius kissed her again, grabbed his jacket, and walked out of the flat. He walked down the stairs and out to the south side of the building where he unchained the motorbike and kick started it to life. It roared loudly as Sirius gunned it forcing the bike into the air. Harry found himself floating alongside as they made their way from London to Godric's Hollow.

Sirius saw the smoke and the dark mark before he landed. "No! No! No!" Sirius said as he set the bike down roughly, letting it fall over as he ran up to Hagrid who was crying along with the baby he held in his hands.

"Gone!" Hagrid cried. "Lily and James both! Gone!" Sirius swore loudly fighting back tears.

Dumbledore places a gentle hand on Sirius's shoulder. "Go back to Jessica and tell her what has happened here. She will need you now more than ever. I will be by in a few hours with Harry since the two of you are now his closest living family."

"She'll want me here with Harry, I'll go tell her but I'll be back soon. Will he be okay?" Sirius asked peeking in the blankets, seeing a lightning shaped cut on the baby's forehead.

"I believe so, yes." Dumbledore said softly. "I am still sorting out the events of the night but it appears your nephew here is the first to survive the Killing Curse." Sirius cringed.

"This is my fault. Sirius whispered. I never should've suggested Wormtail be their secret keeper." Sirius said. "I'm so sorry, Harry."

"You cannot blame yourself for the unknown." Dumbledore said. "The best thing you can do now is make sure Jessica is safe."

I'll be back to pick up Harry myself." He said quietly then apparated on the spot, out of Godric's Hollow, back outside to where he parked the bike. The apartment building was engulfed in flames. Fiend fire, Harry realized as flames shaped like creatures flew in an out of windows, devouring everything in their path. High above another dark mark smoldered in the air.

"NO!" Sirius cried and started running towards the doors but before he reached them….

BOOM!

The top half of the building exploded, including where their flat had once been. Debris began to fall. On instinct, Sirius dropped to the ground to protect himself.

"JESSIE?" He screamed at the top of his lungs "NO! Not my Jessie too! No…" he cried as he picked up her wand that had fallen at his feet.

He stood there for a moment staring blankly up at the flames clutching her wand in his hand before apparating. The scene went solidly black for a moment before swirling into another memory.

Harry found himself standing in the smallest bathroom on the third floor of Grimmauld Place looking at an older Sirius. The Sirius as Harry remembered him was standing before the mirror, his head down as if preparing himself for something he didn't want to do. Taking a long heavy deep breath he finally looked up into his own eyes and began to speak. The way Sirius had set up this memory it was as if he were standing in front of him, looking directly into Harry's own eyes.

"I already told you how the rest of that night unfolded. I lost everything that night, including my freedom.

"I'm sorry, Harry, you deserved to hear this from me much, much sooner but I let my own despair prevent me in sharing her with you. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think of her. Even after fourteen years, I still miss her as if I lost her only yesterday.

"The reason I haven't told you that I was your uncle was because I feel I failed you already in that role by not protecting your aunt or your parents. Without her around I don't feel I deserve to be your uncle anymore."

He took a steadying breath. "She loved you, Harry, as if you were her own. She spent many nights babysitting you while your parents were out on patrol. She gave in to all your wants, spoiled you as often as she could. Sometimes I think she did it just because it annoyed your parents." He gave a half smile into the mirror. "It was with her wand that you showed your first sign of magical ability just before your first birthday and that early is rare in any wizarding family."

Sirius sighed as he readjusted his stance in front of the mirror. Harry could see the pain in his eyes as he talked about her.

"I hope someday I can destroy this memory and tell you about her in person, as you deserve." He sighed again. "I also hope that one day you can forgive me. Forgive me for keeping her from you, for keeping all of this from you. I'm sorry, Harry."

The memory slowly faded to black as Harry felt his feet leave the bathroom floor and land on the stone floor of the meeting room. He collapsed, emotionally exhausted into the chair behind him.

He pulled the memories back out of the pensieve, placed them carefully back into the vial, and placed the stopper back on. He set the vial in front of him and watched the silver smoky liquid like substance swirl through the glass container.

Sirius died before he could tell him about his aunt himself. "Of course I forgive you." Harry said out loud to no one in particular but it made him feel better.

He pulled Jessie's wand out of the pocket of his robes and placed it next to Sirius's memories. He reached back into his pocket and pulled out the old photograph of Sirius, Jessie, his mother and his father and looked at it again. Jessie had the same black hair but it was silky straight, the same eyes as James, and a similar smile. Harry watched as she shifted slightly in the scene.

Harry now knew why Jessie and Sirius were standing on opposite sides of his parents in this photo. If it was taken at the Graduation Party, that meant they were still at odds with each other over what happened at the Yule Ball months prior. By the look on his father's face, neither Jessie nor Sirius had ever told him what happened that night. With as protective as James seemed to be of his sister, Harry couldn't imagine him ever forgiving Sirius for insulting her the way he did. Even Harry found it hard to believe Jessie had ever forgiven him.

As he watched his Aunt Jessie shift uncomfortably in the photo he noticed something familiar in her eyes, in the way she strained to smile happily, even in the way she shifted. The familiarity went beyond family resemblance and his own habits. He'd seen all of it before, but where?

Harry finally grew tired of wondering and placed the items back in his pocket and left the meeting room. He made his way down the seventh floor corridors to the Phoenixsong Common Room.

"Harry? What's wrong?" Ginny asked as soon as she saw him.

"I finished the memories." He answered softly taking her hand and leading her over to a large chair where they could both sit quietly.

Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Luna had all inquired as to what was wrong and why he looked so down. He told them all he would be ok after a good night's sleep. It was when his new friends, the Nigellus twins, had come up to him together that it all finally clicked.

Harry jumped up excitedly as he looked them both over. It was all standing in front of him. In Ryan's eyes and smile, he saw his father and his aunt and in his laugh he had heard his uncle. Ryan was a perfect mix between his parents. Harry nearly burst into a fit of laughter himself as he looked at Gwen. How could he have been so blind? Sirius himself was standing before him in his daughter's features. She looked so much like him. He shocked everyone when he pulled them into a huge hug. "I'm fine!" he said, pulling away. "I haven't felt this good in a long time." He said smiling. "There's someone I need to go talk to, I'll be back." He started running towards the door. "I'll explain everything when I get back!"

As he left the portrait hole he could've sworn he heard Ryan and Ron agree "He's finally gone nuts, hasn't he?"

Harry knocked on Professor Nigellus's office door.

"She's not in." the phoenix said. "Gone off on another wild adventure, I suppose. Been acting weird, if you ask me."

"She just went down to the Three Broomsticks for a drink" George said coming up the corridor with food nicked from the kitchen. "Said she'd be back in…" he looked at his watch "about thirty minutes from now I suppose. Where you been all night?"

"Long story, thanks George." Harry practically skipped down to the Entrance Hall to wait for her to return.

"It's past your curfew Mr. Potter." McGonagall's voice came down the corridor "It is nearly midnight."

"Sorry Professor. I was waiting for Professor Nigellus to return from Hogsmeade."

"Professor Nigellus just left my office a few minutes ago."

"Thanks Professor." Harry said feeling deflated. She had come into the castle through another door.

He walked quietly back up to her office door and knocked again.

"She hasn't returned yet." The Phoenix told him. "Better get inside the Common Room, getting caught out past curfew wouldn't be pleasant" he said as he swung the door open.

"What about the password?" Harry asked.

"Just don't tell anyone and neither of us will get in trouble."

The Common Room was virtually empty except for Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. "Sorry, I'll tell you tomorrow. I need to talk to Professor Nigellus and she's not back yet. I need to go to bed." He told them as he made his way to his dorm room.

"Harry, you feeling okay?" Ron asked as he joined him on the way to bed.

"Yeah, I am actually. I mean, it was hard watching Sirius's memories but I think I learned a little too." Harry said honestly. "I promise, I will tell you everything over breakfast tomorrow."


	33. Her Successful Return

When Jessica woke up Snape was sitting on the bed next to her reading one of the books she bought for him.

"When can I take these blasted stitches out?" he asked her, annoyed. "They itch like mad!"

She smiled "Good Morning, or Afternoon to you too. The doctor said they were dissolving stitches, they'll fall out when their ready."

"You should've left me to die!" he said throwing the book across the room, stood up and began to pace. "You risked too much and you're still at risk now!"

"Oh and you apparating me out of a building covered in Fiend Fire on the heels of Death Eaters wasn't dangerous or risky?" she argued.

Finally stopping in front of the mirror over the dresser he paused and looked at himself. He had showered and he was wearing clean jeans and a plain black T-Shirt, his hair was soft and shiny, she noticed. He dropped his head turning away from his reflection and not looking up at her. "You don't know what I've done" he whispered, his voice not hiding the fact that he was ashamed.

"I know enough to know you deserve a second chance, Severus." She answered.

"Why?"

"Does it really matter? It's done and I'll be ok with whatever future I have to face. "

"That doesn't answer my question." He stated, finally looking up at her.

"I thought it did"

He sat down on the bed opposite her. "There is more to it than you're telling me, more than just me deserving another chance."

"I did it because I wanted to" she said as confidently as she could.

"But why? Why, Jessica, why me?" he stood up again, agitated.

"Severus" she stood up catching him by the hand as he passed the end of the bed again in his pacing. He let a small quiet gasp past his lips at her unexpected touch "Because you're my friend, because I missed you, because I…" she couldn't finish but she piqued his curiosity enough that he didn't pull away. Instead, he stepped closer.

"Because you… what?" he asked. The look on his face was of genuine interest in her answer, all pretentiousness was gone.

She looked up and saw his obsidian eyes sparkling. It was the first time she really noticed them since she saw them the other night, empty and lifeless. "I… I… um…"

"Say it, Jessica" he whispered, taking a step closing the distance between them. "Say it." He whispered softer, his breath gently brushing against her face.

"Because…" Her breath caught. "Because I…" it caught again. "I…" and again when she got caught in those dark eyes. He was waiting, barely breathing for the answer that sat on the tip of her tongue.

"Say it" he breathed once more, barely audible.

"I … I missed you. I… loved you" she breathed back but it was enough. Severus leaned down the few inches needed and gently gave her a small, soft kiss on her forehead. When he pulled away he whispered "Thank you, My Angel."

When they pulled apart he said "You need to go back tonight" softly into her hair. "Go get cleaned up." He suggested. "You look a nightmare." She nodded, softly smiling, and slowly pulled further away to do as he said.

At dusk he walked her down to the street where she would catch the Knight Bus back to the Shrieking Shack.

"Remember I said you would repay me soon enough?" she asked. His eyebrow rose in conjecture. "Meet me at the Shrieking Shack on this date at this time" she handed him a piece of paper. "You're paid up here until then. There's muggle money for food and laundry in the drawer under the television." She said. He nodded hesitantly, pocketing the note.

"Are you sure that's where you'll be?" he asked.

"That's where I'm going now" she smiled.

"You changed your future, remember." He smiled weakly.

"If I'm not there…" she started.

"I'll know where to find you." He said as he raised his wand into the air.

The Knight Bus came screeching to a halt in front of them. She boarded and told the conductor her destination. The doors closed behind her, she took her seat. The bus took off down the road, swerving, sliding, and bumping along the way.

Jessie was shaking with fear as she approached her hiding spot in the grove off the path to the Shrieking Shack. She adjusted the dials on the time-turner to take her back to one hour after she originally left that same spot. The scenery began to swim in fast forward, leaves changing from green to reds, yellows, and gold then finally falling to the ground brown. She checked her watch, it read eleven o'clock. She had fifteen minutes to wait until Severus would be here. She walked up to the shack and pushed open the door intending to wait inside on the chair she remembered being in there.

Instead she found a parchment envelope with only her first name on it. She opened it:

_I know you wanted me to meet you here but I won't be able to get away. I'll explain later. Meet me in my old office. I will leave it unlocked until midnight._

She stood stunned for a second and reread the note. It was unsigned. She walked quickly back up to the castle and pushed on the gates. He was right, they remembered her. She walked down to the entrance closest to the dungeons and knocked on Snape's door. "Enter" his voice boomed through the heavy wood.

"Severus?" she asked tentatively.

"Close the door." He said standing up, his cloak billowing behind him forcing her, trapping her back against the door. "What did you put in that letter you sent to McGonagall." He asked angrily.

She remembered the owl she sent from the stop she made at St. Mungo's when she went out shopping while Snape had been sleeping the day he was released from the hospital. "I just explained what I knew and that she could verify the information with Harry and Dumbledore's portrait. I also mentioned that you might need a place to stay." She told him. "What happened?"

"I left the hotel after a month and returned to here to face my firing squad. I could not let you give up everything for me. Minerva received your letter, questioned Potter as you suggested. Dumbledore confirmed it all as did the memories I left." He said finishing with a sigh. "Because of that, I will be returning as Potions Master after the end of the term." He explained. "I have no idea what changed for you but the woman I've seen since the beginning of the term is…" he hesitated, thinking "is a completely different woman than the one I remember from years ago." He admitted almost painfully.

"I… don't understand? What do you mean?" she asked.

"You are still Professor of Muggle Studies, because of me. Head of Phoenixsong, a new house here containing the returning seventh year students plus some overly eager nitwits who wouldn't be separated from their hero."

"Don't you dare call any of my students nitwits, Severus!" she said sternly and he smiled. He actually smiled. "What's so funny?"

"You saved my life, risking both our futures. I tell you what has happened since you left me and you already know. Nothing changed for you, it seems." He said, still smiling.

"I know there will be repercussions I have yet to face but so far so good in my opinion. What do you mean she's different?" she asked.

He sighed again, taking his time to answer. "The woman I knew my seventh year was… stronger. She would never have appeared in the Great Hall a frazzled, frail looking woman with fear in her eyes. No. The woman I knew would have stood with her head held high, proud to be included in a world in which she knew she belonged."

"Time changes people, places change people. And that girl you speak of would never have had the knowledge required to save you." She said softly. "And I think we're now even again." She smiled up at him.

"What makes you think we're even? I do not recall rescuing you or saving you yet." He said pointedly.

Jessie laughed. "You risked your neck coming here early; allowed yourself, as you stated, to face the firing squad; made sure I still became Professor of Muggle Studies; didn't mess with anything in the storehouse or your private stores to prevent me from reviving you; and obviously didn't mess with my head since you came back." Jessie sighed. "Don't you realize how much is involved in those actions? You saved my future, my career. We are very much even."

He sighed in defeat. "Fine, but outside the walls of my quarters I will be the teacher and potions master I have always been and you will not contradict me."

"Whatever you say Professor Snape." She said teasingly planting a kiss on his cheek. He tried to look stern and angry, every bit the old Snape this school loved to hate but in that moment, he melted. She turned to go but he pulled her back to him into his arms.

"Thank you, my Angel." He said again, kissing her forehead lightly. "Stay for a while?"

"I can't. I need to make sure I'm seen by Professor McGonagall before I go up to my office."

"You never should have left the confines of this castle, Jessica. It was way more dangerous for you than I ever imagined. The lockdown is for your safety, not those of the students." He began repremading.

"I'm sorry, Severus. I… needed someone…"

"You have your kids here, you have Harry here. What more could you need?"

"I needed and adult, someone who understands me, who doesn't look at me like I'm some freak or a danger to the students. The teachers at the meeting last night were sounding like they wanted to boot me out of the school."

Snape laughed again. "There was a meeting last night but no one even thought about you being a danger to the students. They love you here, you'll see. I promise." He said kissing the back of her hand.

"The students know you're back, don't they?" she asked.

"No… I've been hiding out here until the end of term. Traveling by the inter-school floo-network." He sighed. "The woman you left behind has been a bit harsh." He added.

"You started it" she joked. "Well, actually, your portrait did but I suppose that doesn't matter now?" she asked.

"Out there, yes, it will." He sighed. "I have a reputation to uphold in this school."

Jessie shook her head and smiled. "Fine, Professor Snape. I will see you at breakfast in the morning now that I'm back?"

He smiled softly at her. "Only if you join me here."

She pulled out of his arms and put her hands on her hips. "Severus Snape. I risked my life for you and you won't even join me at the breakfast table?" she said playfully.

"Now that is the Jessica I remember." He chuckled. "I'll be there."

"Good, then I'll see you in the morning." She said as he slipped out the door and up to McGonagall's office before finally crawling into bed, smiling at her success.


	34. The Prince's Return

The following morning Harry nearly skipped smiling into the Great Hall for breakfast. He had slept soundly for the first time in months, dreaming of finally getting the answers to questions he had never been able to ask anyone before. He was looking forward to calmly confronting his Aunt Jessie about the secrets she had been keeping for nearly five months.

When he looked up at the staff table be was disappointed to find that his aunt, Professor Nigellus, was missing but he didn't let that darken his mood. He knew she would show up eventually and if she didn't, he could always talk to her after his Muggle Studies class or at lunch, or even at dinner. He knew he would get the chance to tell her he finally knew who she was.

He sat down at the Phoenixsong table and began piling sausages, bacon, and eggs onto his plate. He felt like he hadn't properly eaten in weeks. The stresses of his homework, the squib research, wondering what was in box and in Sirius's memories had taken their toll and now one of those was off his worry list. The added bonus of now knowing he had real, living family and that they were at the school with him seemed to make everything else around him more bearable.

"Harry, have you spoken to Professor Nigellus yet?" asked Ginny.

"No, not yet" he said after quickly swallowing his first mouthful of food.

"Are you going to tell us anything about the memories?" Ron asked curiously.

"And why do you need to wait until you talk to Professor Nigellus?" Hermione asked, skeptically. "What does she have to do with Sirius's memories?"

"Well…" he began but hesitated. He wanted to be careful not to spill the beans too early but didn't want to outright lie to his friends. "Remember how she knew about Lupin being a werewolf? Well… I think she might have been in a few of the memories. I want to be sure it was her before I go making assumptions." He finished and quickly refilled his mouth with food to delay answering any more questions.

"Looks like your first opportunity to find out is right about now. Professor Nigellus just walked through the doors." Hermione said pointing to the doors of the Great Hall.

Harry turned in his seat and looked. Professor Nigellus, who usually looked frazzled and frail, was entering into the Great Hall with her head held high and a smile on her face. Her silver streaked black hair now seemed to flow freely instead of the slightly frizzy ponytail she usually wore. She walked about a quarter of the way up to the staff table then slowed down and turned back to face the doors as if expecting something or someone, Harry thought, then continued up towards the staff table.

What she was expecting was the last thing in the world Harry would've ever expected to walk through the doors of the Great Hall today, or any day. The figure in the black robes practically glided into the hall and swiftly walked past Nigellus up to the staff table. Harry heard the sounds of chatter stop immediately and the clinking and clanging of silverware crashing onto plates, tables, and the floor, including his own fork landing somewhere at his feet. Professor Severus Snape was alive.

He hadn't realized he stood up until he sat down on the bench and turned to Ron and Hermione. Their faces mirrored the shock he felt inside. They were there with him when they all saw him die but they weren't there when he returned early the next morning to find his body had been removed. He honestly believed that Ministry Officials had removed it because the idea of Death Eaters laying claim to it saddened him. Professor Snape had deserved better than anything any Death Eater could've done to him.

"Harry?" Hermione asked in disbelief. "He was dead when we left, wasn't he?"

"Yeah."

"But… How?" She asked.

"Dunno." He said, watching as both professors sat down on opposite sides of the staff table and began filling their plates.

Harry could hear the murmur of whispers begin around him all asking the same questions. "He's alive?" and "Where has he been?" and "What happened to him?" The same questions were running through his own mind. He saw him die. When he looked around the room at the questioning faces he noticed that even the Slytherin table looked confused. They were told Snape had died at the hands of Voldemort in the Final Battle but now Snape sat as plain as day at the staff table for the first time in months. The only people who didn't look confused, Harry discovered, were the staff members.

"Harry? Are we sure he was one hundred percent dead when we left him?" Ron asked as he too watched Snape in disbelief.

"Dunno." Answered Harry. In all honesty he believed Snape to be dead but they had never checked his body for a pulse. They had assumed Nagini's bite and her venom had truly meant the end of him.

Speculations flew in the corridors as the students went on to their morning classes including one sixth year Slytherin suggesting that it wasn't Snape but someone else using Polyjuice Potion and a Hufflepuff believing Snape to be an inferi. A group of Gryffindor began telling everyone that would listen that Snape was back to his old ways, spying on the school for the Death Eaters. Snape was the Death Eaters first success at resurrecting the dead. Unbeknownst to them, the Ravenclaws seemed to have the closest theory, that Snape had somehow survived his injuries and had remained in hiding until today.

As Harry made his way up to his Muggle Studies class he couldn't help but to wonder some of the same things too but he quickly pushed them out of his mind when he walked into the classroom to see a note posted on the door.

_Class today will be held on the seventh floor in the room across from the portrait of Barnabas the Barmy attempting to teach trolls ballet. – Professor J. N._

Harry, Ron, Hermione and a few others looked at each other in disbelief again.

"She's holding class in the Room of Requirement?" asked Hermione as they walked up the nearest staircase that would take them where they needed to be.

"Bloody hell… Now what does she have in store for us that she can't teach us in a normal classroom?" asked Ron.

Upon arriving, they noticed the door to the room was standing wide open and inside they found that it had been transformed into a giant kitchen classroom. There were dozens of cooking stations each equipped with its own stove and oven, a set of cupboards, and a refrigerator in a style Harry had only seen in old magazines at Mrs. Figg's house. In the middle of the room were large dining tables with chairs, all facing the front of the classroom where the professor was sitting at a teacher's desk.

"Excuse me, Professor" Hermione asked with her arm in the air. "These aren't electric appliances, aren't they? The magic in the castle interferes with all electronic devices."

Professor Nigellus smiled "Correct Miss Granger, the magic in and around the school renders all electronic equipment, including appliances, useless. These are powered by gas." She said as she looked around the room. "Today we will be learning the basics of muggle cooking, the names of common utensils and the methods used to prepare food. It's really not much different from cooking in the magical world, it just takes longer."

"You don't really expect us to cook like muggles now, do you?" came Draco's sly voice from the back of the room. "I heard it was disgusting and messy."

Nigellus laughed. "It's only messy if you're not careful Mr. Malfoy. Like I said, it's not much different that magical cooking." She explained again to him.

Addressing the class she said "The main difference between magic and muggle cooking is time. In the magical world we can whip out our wands and automate the process of chopping vegetables, we can bring water to a boil in mere seconds, and to bake a cake all we need is the right spell. However, in the muggle world, the chopping must be done by hand, water can take minutes to boil while it comes up to the correct temperature, and baking a cake requires the use of an oven and can take a minimum of 20 minutes to finish."

She spent the next few minutes of class proving that muggles and wizards use much of the same cooking equipment, explained the purpose of refrigerators and ovens and showed them how to operate them. She then pointed to the blackboard behind her desk on which was written a simple recipe for pie that would take much of the remaining time in class to complete. "Tasting of the pies will occur tonight after dinner, so make sure you save room for desert!" she finished and told the class to begin.

Harry had experience in the kitchen from when Aunt Petunia would force him to assist in preparing meals while she cleaned. His heart gave a lurch when his mind touched on Aunts. Here in this room with him was his own aunt. As he chopped his apples for his pie he watched her walk around the room examining and occasionally assisting in the progress of others. He was so distracted in watching her that he accidently nicked his finger with the knife.

"Ouch!" he exclaimed and dropped his knife on the floor. Blood was seeping from the small cut on the tip of his left index finger. He quickly wrapped it in a towel to stop the bleeding. Hermione was already at his side asking to examine it and repair it when Professor Nigellus walked up to see what the excitement was about.

"Mr. Potter, are you alright?" she asked quietly as she unwrapped his finger to get a better look at the wound. The blood was already slowing.

"Yea, I think so." He said as she turned his hand in hers to get a better look. Harry couldn't help but feel thrilled that his own flesh and blood relative was now at his side and she was taking care of him.

"We better wash this out, dear. You don't want it to get infected." She said as she led him over to the nearest sink, which happened to be out of earshot of the rest of the class.

Harry watched as she carefully made sure the cut was clean. "Professor, I think it will be alright with a little bit of Wound Sealing Serum or a spell…" but he cut himself off. Those options would mean less time with her away from the rest of the class.

She was going on about being careful with knives and paying attention to the task at hand when cooking when Harry's mouth opened before his brain could stop him. "Aunt Jessie, can we talk?" he asked quietly.

Jessica Nigellus stopped, stunned. "Harry? How… how did you find out?" she whispered with tears glistening in her eyes.

He reached into his right robe pocket and pulled out the old photo and the wand he had been caring around and showed them to her. He answered her with one simple word: "Sirius"


End file.
